well-being
Definition
Well-being refers to a composite of affective and evaluative states, including positive and negative emotions and life satisfaction, that can be assessed during specific behavioural interventions such as voluntary digital disconnection. Research examining 24-hour unplugging challenges measured these indicators across Chinese and Australian samples, finding that refraining from internet use was associated with more negative emotions and lower life satisfaction. Social support and social isolation functioned as mediating variables in this relationship, with higher social isolation predicting worse emotional outcomes during the offline period. Conspiracy mentality amplified this pattern: participants who held stronger conspiracy beliefs reported greater social isolation and correspondingly more negative emotions when unplugged.
Sources: Jetten et al. (2023)
Related Terms
- social media (1 shared article)
- unplugging (1 shared article)
- social isolation (1 shared article)
- conspiracy beliefs (1 shared article)
Applications
Well-being and Social Isolation
Social isolation consistently predicted lower well-being during digital disconnection, with correlations between isolation and negative emotions reaching r = .66 in the Chinese sample and r = .83 in the Australian sample. This relationship held across two culturally distinct contexts, indicating that the emotional cost of feeling cut off from social networks is not specific to collectivistic or individualistic settings. Social isolation was also identified as a mediator linking conspiracy mentality to negative emotional outcomes during the unplugging period.
Sources: Jetten et al. (2023)
Well-being and Conspiracy Mentality
Higher conspiracy mentality scores were associated with more negative emotions during a 24-hour digital detox in both samples studied. The mechanism linking conspiracy mentality to this diminished well-being operated through reduced social support and heightened feelings of isolation, suggesting that those who endorse conspiracy beliefs are particularly dependent on online environments for social connection. Losing internet access therefore carries a greater emotional cost for this group than for those lower in conspiracy mentality.
Sources: Jetten et al. (2023)
Well-being and Social Support
Perceived social support shaped emotional well-being during unplugging, with lower social support during the offline period linked to more negative affect. Social support mediated the association between conspiracy beliefs and negative emotions, meaning that the distress experienced by high-conspiracy-mentality individuals when offline was explained in part by their sense of being cut off from supportive others.
Sources: Jetten et al. (2023)
