The prison of online performance: social achievement goals as a buffer between social media and digital stress

The increasing integration of social media into daily life has raised concern about its psychological consequences, particularly for young adults navigating self-presentation and social validation online. This dissertation investigates how individual differences in social achievement goal orientations—development (DEV) and demonstration (DEM)—moderate the relationship between social media use (SMU) and approval anxiety, a key form of digital stress. Grounded in Social Achievement Goal Theory and the Digital Stress Framework, this study employed a cross-sectional design with 377 participants aged 18–25 who use Instagram daily or nearly daily for personal and social purposes. Data were analyzed using a Generalized Additive Model (GAM) to account for non-linear and interactive effects. Findings revealed that DEM significantly moderated the relationship between SMU and approval anxiety, with higher DEM associated with greater anxiety as SMU increased. Contrary to hypotheses, DEV did not function as a protective factor. Instead, DEV further amplified the DEM–SMU interaction, with the highest levels of approval anxiety reported among individuals high in both DEV and DEM. These findings suggest that high social motivation across both orientations may exacerbate digital stress, particularly in online environments that emphasize performance and public validation.The results contribute to a nuanced understanding of individual vulnerability to digital stress and highlight the importance of addressing motivational orientations in mental health interventions and platform design. Practical implications include recommendations for clinicians, educators, and tech developers to promote healthier social media use and reduce approval-driven engagement among youth.