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Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

The Social Science Journal

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/soscij

Social media and life satisfaction among college students: A

moderated mediation model of SNS communication network
heterogeneity and social self-efficacy on satisfaction with
campus life
Yonghwan Kim a , Bumsoo Kim b , Ha-Sung Hwang a,∗ , Dohyung Lee c
a
Department of Media and Communication, Dongguk University, Seoul, South Korea
b
College of Communication and Information Sciences, University of Alabama, USA
c
Department of Global Trade, Dongguk University, Seoul, South Korea

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: This study explored whether and how communication network heterogeneity on social
Received 9 March 2018 networking services (SNSs) is associated with college students’ satisfaction with campus
Received in revised form 3 December 2018 life. In particular, it examined the mediating role of social self-efficacy in the relation-
Accepted 3 December 2018
ship between SNS communication network heterogeneity and campus life satisfaction and
Available online xxx
whether such indirect effects of SNS network heterogeneity on life satisfaction via social
self-efficacy are contingent upon college students’ origins (in-state vs. out-of-state). The
Keywords:
findings show that having greater communication with heterogeneous others on SNSs
SNS network heterogeneity
was positively associated with college students’ satisfaction with campus life and that the
Social self-efficacy
Satisfaction with campus life respondents’ perceived social self-efficacy mediated the relationship between SNS com-
munication heterogeneity and campus life satisfaction. Furthermore, this indirect effect
of SNS communication network heterogeneity on campus life satisfaction through social
self-efficacy was stronger for in-state students than for out-of-state students.
© 2018 Western Social Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction
Social media such as social networking services (SNSs)
enable individuals to communicate or interact with var-
ious individuals (Ellison, Steinfield, & Lampe, 2007). As
interaction with heterogeneous opinions has generated
meaningful social consequences (Kim, Hsu, & Gil de Zúñiga,
2013), a handful of studies have examined the political
effects of interaction with heterogeneous people on social
media platforms, conceptualizing such interaction as net-
∗ Corresponding author.
E-mail addresses: yhkim17@dongguk.edu (Y.
bkim29@crimson.ua.edu (B. Kim), hhwang@dongguk.edu (H.-S. Hwang),
dohyunglee@dongguk.edu (D. Lee).
work heterogeneity (e.g., Kim & Chen, 2015). Setting aside
the political effects of network heterogeneity on social
media platforms, this study focuses on the mediating role
of social self-efficacy to investigate whether and in what
ways SNS network heterogeneity, which for the purpose of
this study refers to the degree of individuals’ interaction or
communication with various and heterogeneous people on
SNSs, is associated with users’ life satisfaction.
Existing literature has revealed that social media use
positively influences individuals’ life-satisfaction or sub-
jective well-being (e.g., Valenzuela, Park, & Kee, 2009;
Wang, 2013). Although previous studies have focused on
general social media use as well as specific types of usage
Kim), such as self-disclosure behaviors and clicking the like or
share buttons, the question of how SNS communication

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soscij.2018.12.001
0362-3319/© 2018 Western Social Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Please cite this article in press as: Kim, Y., et al. Social media and life satisfaction among college students: A moderated
mediation model of SNS communication network heterogeneity and social self-efficacy on satisfaction with campus life.
The Social Science Journal (2019), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soscij.2018.12.001
G Model
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2 Y. Kim et al. / The Social Science Journal xxx (2019) xxx–xxx
network heterogeneity is associated with perceived life-
satisfaction is little studied. This study aims to fill this gap
in the literature by examining how interaction with het-
erogeneous others on social media is associated with life
satisfaction. In particular, to extend our understanding of
how and why SNS use influences individuals’ psychological
well-being, it is necessary to explore possible mechanisms
by which interaction with various others on SNS is associ-
ated with one’s life-satisfaction.
We propose that social self-efficacy, which refers to an
individual’s perceived capability to engage in social situa-
tions and create new friendships (Anderson & Betz, 2001;
Gecas, 1989), can play a mediating role in the relation-
ship between SNS communication network heterogeneity
and life-satisfaction. It is essential for college students to
have self-confidence to engage in various kinds of social
interactions in their campus and daily lives. Interactions
with diverse and heterogeneous individuals on SNS may
train students in the future to confidently speak out and/or
increase social skills — attributes that are important for
developing a constructive campus life. In this sense, social
self-efficacy can be particularly enhanced through com-
munication with heterogeneous SNS users, which in turn
would be positively associated with perceived satisfaction
with campus life.
Another noteworthy aspect of this research is that
it examines how the relationship between SNS hetero-
geneity, social self-efficacy, and satisfaction with campus
life is contingent on student origins (whether they come
from in-state vs. out-of-state). Students from in-state and
out-of-state may have different resources, social/human
networks, and experiences with the university commu-
nity, and these factors can influence their interactions with
others in their everyday lives (see Anderson & Douglas-
Gabriel, 2016; Koch, 2016; Strayer, 2016). For example, it is
plausible that compared to out-of-state students, in-state
students may have more local resources to access in the
city where the college is located. That is, in-state students
might get along with their friends relatively easily given
their prior experiences and knowledge about the school,
local communities, and places (e.g., introducing restaurants
or landmarks, taking their friends to places of interest, and
so on) while interacting with their friends on SNSs as well as
in their offline everyday lives. However, it remains unclear
who between in-state and out-of-state students are likely
to be more socially self-efficacious and more satisfied with
campus life when they interact with heterogeneous oth-
ers on SNSs. We attempt to fill this gap in the literature
by testing the moderated mediation relationships between
the proposed variables. Furthermore, this is the first study
to examine the role of student’s origin in the relationship
between SNS network heterogeneity, social self-efficacy,
and satisfaction with campus life.
Fig. 1 depicts the path connections. In sum, after testing
the direct relationships between SNS network heterogene-
ity, social self-efficacy, and satisfaction with campus life,
we investigate whether social self-efficacy mediates the
effect of SNS network heterogeneity on satisfaction. In
addition, we examine how this mediating mechanism dif-
fers according to student origins (in-state vs. out-of-state).
Please cite this article in press as: Kim, Y., et al. Social media and life satisfaction among college students: A moderated
mediation model of SNS communication network heterogeneity and social self-efficacy on satisfaction with campus life.
The Social Science Journal (2019), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soscij.2018.12.001
This study focuses on college students for several
reasons. College students are a representative SNS user
group of a variety of individuals of diverse demographic
backgrounds who have opportunities to interact with het-
erogeneous others in their everyday lives both online
and offline (Greenwood, Perrin, & Duggan, 2016). In addi-
tion, particularly in difficult economic circumstances (e.g.,
unemployment rate, high cost of living, etc.), college stu-
dents may meet some difficulties in achieving their goals
and dreams during their college years, and they may want
to interact with others to seek out various information
for their school work and daily lives in their offline and
online worlds. Therefore, knowing how college students
can achieve life-satisfaction is an important matter and
may provide some practical suggestions to make college
students’ campus life better.
2. Literature review
2.1. SNS communication network heterogeneity and
social self-efficacy
With the advent of digital technology, online interaction
has become a type of social capital, providing diverse forms
of association through online discussion groups, email con-
versations, and comments on social media (Fukuyama,
2001). Digital technology provides a positive infrastructure
that encourages the formation of social capital by giving
people chances to connect with their friends and family
as well as acquaintances and strangers even when they
are at a distance (Calabrese & Borchert, 1996). In addi-
tion, individuals’ communication behaviors on information
and communication technologies (ICTs) increase their per-
ceived social flexibility and modifiability (Brown, 2014;
Chen & McGrath, 2003; Zheng, McAlack, Wilmes, Kohler-
Evans, & Williamson, 2009). In particular, due to its ability
to facilitate communication with others and to build and
maintain social ties (Woolley, Limperos, & Oliver, 2010),
social media have been reputed to facilitate interaction
with various and heterogeneous individuals (Kim et al.,
2013). College students, renowned as prolific SNS users (see
Greenwood et al., 2016), are particularly likely to use these
tools for various purposes including learning new school-
related information and creating new relationships with
others. Sharing new information and knowledge with other
diverse people can benefit students and improve their lives
on campus.
Those who are exposed to the diverse viewpoints of
others are able to learn about new perspectives they did
not know (Bandura, 1977). Active interaction with oth-
ers allows individuals to increase their perceived social
skills and confidence to further engage in the social envi-
ronment surrounding them (Yang, Wang, & Lu, 2016). In
the literature, one’s social skills and/or confidence based
on interpersonal interaction have been conceptualized as
social self-efficacy (Bilgin & Akkapulu, 2007; Fan & Mak,
1998; Yang et al., 2016). The concept of social self-efficacy
encompasses such skills as social confidence, engagement
in social activities, and approachable/supporting behaviors
(Connolly, 1989).
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Social
Self-efficacy
SNS Communication
Network
Heterogeneity
Fig. 1. Hypothesized model of the relationships between social media network heterogeneity, social self-efficacy, satisfaction with campus life, and
participants’ origins.
Presumably, SNS communication network heterogene-
ity can be positively associated with individuals’ perceived
level of social self-efficacy for two reasons. First, exposure
to diverse perspectives and information on SNS gives users
internal confidence when they face conflicts of communi-
cation. The principal logic of self-efficacy theory (Bandura,
1977) is that interaction with various and heterogeneous
individuals is a useful strategy to obtain new information.
Gecas (1989) highlights that individuals enhance their per-
ceived capability to engage in social situations and create
new friendships as they often interact with others who
have different points of view. Specifically, college students
are likely to fulfill their desire to obtain large amounts of
information about school events or job-related information
as well as their everyday lives through communicating with
various friends on SNSs (see Park & Lee, 2014), so they may
feel confident about engaging in different social environ-
ments and working with their classmates or co-workers.
Secondly, levels of social self-efficacy can be increased
by the degree to which students obtain practical and
psychological benefits from others. Bandura, Barbaranelli,
Caprara, and Pastorelli (1996) demonstrated that success-
ful interactions with peers and teachers can be associated
with academic accomplishments. Some research empha-
sizes the positive relationship between social capital and
interaction among college students on social media (Ellison
et al., 2007). In addition, interacting with others at school is
significantly associated with having a sense of group mem-
bership (Chan, 2016). More specifically, those who engage
in groups can reduce their difficulties relating to school life
and increase their social skills, as learning about the norms,
values, and attitudes of the group they belong to train indi-
viduals to be more mature as social beings (Turner, Hogg,
Oakes, Reicher, & Wetherell, 1987). Furthermore, by shar-
ing a variety of thoughts and opinions related to everyday
campus life, individuals learn about problem-solving skills
as well as increase attachment to their peers (Bilgin &
Akkapulu, 2007). Students therefore perceive themselves
as mature social beings who are able to engage in many
kinds of social gatherings (e.g., discussion classes, academic
symposiums, and service learning activities during campus
life). They may have fewer difficulties interacting with new
people, including classmates, staff members, and profes-
sors (Fan & Mak, 1998). On the other hand, a person who
hesitates to interact with others may have relatively fewer
chances to obtain practical and psychological benefits and
therefore to increase internal confidence to actually inter-
Please cite this article in press as: Kim, Y., et al. Social media and life satisfaction among college students: A moderated
mediation model of SNS communication network heterogeneity and social self-efficacy on satisfaction with campus life.
The Social Science Journal (2019), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soscij.2018.12.001
3
Origin
Satisfaction with
Campus life
act with others. Based on these considerations, we propose
the following hypothesis:
H1. SNS network heterogeneity among college students
will be positively associated with social self-efficacy.
2.2. Social self-efficacy and satisfaction with campus life
There might be diverse psychological factors and exter-
nal forces that impact student satisfaction with campus
life. Constantine, Okazaki, & Utsey (2004) emphasize that
by actively engaging in interpersonal interactions with
people of diverse demographic backgrounds, individuals
can increase their perceived ability to successfully create
social contacts and act in social situations. Other stud-
ies have demonstrated that this perceived ability or social
self-efficacy is positively associated with individuals’ life
satisfaction (e.g., Solmaz, 2014). For instance, Connolly
(1989) demonstrates that those who have a higher level of
social self-efficacy are likely to seek out social experiences
with the expectation that those experiences will be suc-
cessful (Solmaz, 2014). Moreover, perceived competence to
engage in different social situations and confidence to make
new friends are considered important factors that help col-
lege students to enjoy their college life (see Demakis &
McAdams, 1994).
Those who have a higher level of social self-efficacy
more often experience positive mental and psychological
moods than negative moods such as stress (Constantine
et al., 2004), loneliness and social dissatisfaction (Galanaki
& Kalantzi-Azizi, 1999), and depression (Hermann & Betz,
2004). For example, Fan and Mak (1998) discovered that
people who have a high sense of social self-efficacy are
likely to have social confidence, sharing interests, and
friendship initiatives. Smith and Betz (2000) found that
one’s level of social self-efficacy is positively correlated
with perceived social confidence and enterprising confi-
dence. In addition, those who have higher levels of social
self-efficacy are more likely to express their thoughts and
opinions instead of being shy (Hermann & Betz, 2004).
Wu, Wang, Eric Zhi-Feng, Hu, and Wu-Yuin (2012) dis-
covered that social self-efficacy is directly associated with
social trust among individuals and has a positive relation-
ship with bridging and bonding social capital as well. The
existing findings suggest that an increased sense of social
self-efficacy is more likely to be connected to positive psy-
chological outcomes such as life satisfaction. Building upon
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these theoretical explanations and accumulated empirical
findings, the following hypothesis is therefore posited:
H2. Social self-efficacy will be positively associated with
college students’ satisfaction with campus life.
2.3. Indirect effect: social self-efficacy as a mediator
The debates over whether the use of SNSs is positively
associated with individuals’ subjective well-being or life
satisfaction are ongoing. Some research has demonstrated
that individuals’ SNS usage is directly and positively related
to perceived levels of life-satisfaction (Akin & Akin, 2015;
Valenzuela et al., 2009; Wang, Gaskin, Wang, & Liu, 2016).
For example, Ellison et al. (2007) reported that Facebook
use positively affects emotional resources such as satis-
faction with life and subjective well-being. In contrast,
others argue that social media use may have negative side
effects such as increasing depression and loneliness (Ryan
& Xenos, 2011; Wright et al., 2013). These conflicting find-
ings may be in part because the measures of social media
use do not specify various kinds of activities and interactive
aspects of social media platforms and thus do not distin-
guish whether users are actively interacting with others to
build or maintain their social networks or using them for
different purposes such as just looking around, killing time,
or engaging in vaguebooking (see Berryman, Ferguson, &
Negy, 2017; Seo, Kim, & Yang, 2016).
Recent research, therefore, has started to distinguish
among various types of usages and features of social
media platforms and examine the differential impacts in
terms of individuals’ psychological well-being (e.g., Keipi,
Koiranen, Koivula, & Räsänen, 2017). For example, Pittman
and Reich (2016) found that compared to text-based plat-
forms such as Twitter and Yik Yak, image-based platforms
such as Instagram and Snapchat increased individuals’ hap-
piness and satisfaction with life. In line with this stream
of research, which aims to extend the literature on social
media use and life satisfaction, it has become important to
examine why and how certain types of activities on social
media could be associated with psychological well-being or
life satisfaction to better understand the function of emerg-
ing social media in our lives.
The direct relationships between SNS communication
network heterogeneity and social self-efficacy as well as
social self-efficacy and campus life satisfaction explained
above may suggest that social self-efficacy might play a
mediating role in the relationship between SNS communi-
cation network heterogeneity and campus life satisfaction.
The previous findings and explanations demonstrating the
positive relationship between SNS use and psychologi-
cal well-being (Seo et al., 2016; Valenzuela et al., 2009;
Wang, 2013) and the positive role of social self-efficacy
on mental status (Constantine et al., 2004; Hermann &
Betz, 2004) suggest a potential mediating role of social
self-efficacy in the relationship between SNS communica-
tion network heterogeneity and satisfaction with campus
life. However, although a positive indirect relationship
between SNS communication network heterogeneity and
perceived satisfaction with campus life through levels
of social self-efficacy may seem likely, such a mediation
Please cite this article in press as: Kim, Y., et al. Social media and life satisfaction among college students: A moderated
mediation model of SNS communication network heterogeneity and social self-efficacy on satisfaction with campus life.
The Social Science Journal (2019), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soscij.2018.12.001
model has not been empirically demonstrated. Beyond the
direct mechanisms proposed in the hypotheses above, we
therefore expect that social self-efficacy mediates the rela-
tionship between SNS heterogeneity and college students’
satisfaction with campus life and propose the following
hypothesis:
H3. Social self-efficacy will mediate the relationship
between SNS network heterogeneity and satisfaction with
campus life.
2.4. Moderated mediation model: origin as a moderator
Determinants of individuals’ perceived life satisfaction
have been studied in various fields including psychology
and sociology (Khattab & Fenton, 2009; Kwan, Bond, &
Singelis, 1997). In particular, demographic factors such as
gender, age, income, and education have been found to
influence individuals’ life satisfaction (Daig, Herschbach,
Lehmann, Knoll, & Decker, 2009; Fernandez-Ballesteros,
Zamarron, & Angel Ruiz, 2001).
We note that, among the various factors, students’
origin might play an important role in the relation-
ship between SNS communication network heterogeneity,
social self-efficacy, and their satisfaction with campus life.
Specifically, the relationship between college students’ SNS
communication network heterogeneity, their social self-
efficacy, and campus life satisfaction might differ between
in-state and out-of-state students because they might react
the university environment differently as in-state students
may be more accustomed to the area or the community of
university (see Anderson & Douglas-Gabriel, 2016; Koch,
2016; Strayer, 2016).
As members of institutions where individuals of var-
ious demographic backgrounds gather, college students
have many chances to understand and learn about diverse
thoughts, values, and cultures during campus life. Above
all, the degree to which and the ways students feel satis-
fied with college life can differ based on whether or not they
grew up in the region where the college is located. Someone
who made a big transition to attend school in a new place
may perceive life there differently than someone who is
familiar with the place. When going to college in a different
city or country, people have to adjust to new challenges in
everyday life, academics, and their jobs, and they also have
to deal with emotional attachment to the family and friends
they left behind (Ye, 2006). This may be the case when they
depend more on social media not only to maintain estab-
lished relationships from their home town but also to build
new relationships during the transition to the new environ-
ment. Lin, Peng, Kim, Kim, & LaRose (2012) examined how
international students’ Facebook usage affected their social
capital and social adjustment and found that more inter-
action with other students on Facebook resulted in better
social adjustment in their school life. This is because “by
exchanging activity photos and messages on SNSs, inter-
national students could gain greater social bridging capital
and even lead to offline interactions” (Lin et al., 2012, p.
435). These results suggest that heterogeneous interaction
on social media could especially help international stu-
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dents who are encountering a new environment to be more
socially adjusted.
Recognizing that differences in student backgrounds
can be a significant indicator of the speed at which they
adjust to college life and that interaction with diverse
friends on SNS facilitates students’ social adjustment, some
questions arise: Does a student’s origin play a role in
the relationships between SNS heterogeneity, social self-
efficacy, and satisfaction with college life? Specifically, does
the indirect effect of SNS heterogeneity on college students’
satisfaction with life through social self-efficacy differ
depending on their origins? These questions are impor-
tant to investigate given the conflicting findings regarding
the relationship between social media use and psycho-
logical well-being as explained above (e.g., Ryan & Xenos,
2011; Valenzuela et al., 2009; Wang et al., 2016; Wright
et al., 2013), which suggests that there could be moderat-
ing variables in that relationship. Thus, providing empirical
evidence of what variables may moderate the relationship
between social media usages and individuals’ psychologi-
cal well-being will contribute to the literature in this area.
Identifying differences between in-state and out-of-
state students might also suggest practical implications for
universities as well as various social settings, particularly in
heterogenous social circumstances, that will help commu-
nity members from various backgrounds handle and adjust
to their daily difficulties regarding life and academic or job
performance in their social network (Wang & Kanungo,
2004). This will be directly associated with psychological
well-being.
With these considerations, we divide students into
in-state and out-of-state groups and investigate a moder-
ated mediation relationship—that is, whether the indirect
relationship between SNS communication network hetero-
geneity, social self-efficacy, and campus life satisfaction is
contingent upon college students’ origin. In light of the
shortage of empirical evidence, we propose the following
research question:
RQ1. How do individuals’ origins (in state vs. out-of-
state) moderate the indirect effect of SNS communication
network heterogeneity on satisfaction with campus life
through social self-efficacy?
3. Method
3.1. Sample
We collected survey data between January and April
2015 from a public research university in the south-
eastern United States via an online survey created on
Qualtrics. In order to increase the number of survey par-
ticipants, we distributed an email invitation and subjects
who completed the survey received extra credit in class.
Undergraduate students in communication courses regis-
tered for the participation pool system were recruited. A
total of 580 respondents participated in the survey; all of
these responses were included in the analysis without any
observations eliminated. Given that the participation pool
system renews every semester, data collection of this study
Please cite this article in press as: Kim, Y., et al. Social media and life satisfaction among college students: A moderated
mediation model of SNS communication network heterogeneity and social self-efficacy on satisfaction with campus life.
The Social Science Journal (2019), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soscij.2018.12.001
5
ended when the participation pool system was closed at the
end of the semester.
3.2. Measures
3.2.1. Perceived SNS communication network
heterogeneity
Based on previous operationalizations of the concept
of discussion network heterogeneity (Kim et al., 2013;
Scheufele, Nisbet, Brossard, & Nisbet, 2004), we asked
respondents to report to what extent they use SNS to
communicate with heterogeneous individuals. On a 5-
point scale ranging from 1 (Never) to 5 (Very Frequently),
they reported how often they communicate through SNS
with people of different (1) genders, (2) opinions, (3)
race/ethnicity, (4) religions, (5) nationalities, (6) majors,
(7) places, and (8) cultural backgrounds. We averaged the
eight items to create an index of perceived SNS communi-
cation network heterogeneity, with higher scores reflecting
greater levels of communication with heterogeneous oth-
ers (Cronbach’s alpha = .93, M = 3.50, SD = .88).
Like many measures used in survey research, the mea-
sure of the heterogeneity of the communication network in
this study is not a direct/actual measure of one’s social net-
work; it is a perceived frequency of communicating with
diverse others. This self-report technique of measuring
the frequency of communication with discussion partners
across various dimensions such as gender, race/ethnicity,
and ideology has been used in previous research (Scheufele
et al., 2004, Scheufele, Hardy, Brossard, Waismel-Manor, &
Nisbet, 2006). In particular, the use of respondents’ self-
report of communication network heterogeneity allows
us to capture the perception of one’s social environment
or “actual cross-pressures because such pressures are the
result of perceived differences” (Scheufele et al., 2006, p.
740). In other words, individuals should be aware of the
diversity and frequency of their communication with het-
erogeneous others for such diversity to be associated with
their cognitive processes or beliefs in their own efficacy.1
3.2.2. Social self-efficacy
Social self-efficacy refers to individuals’ belief that they
are competent in engaging in social situations and forming
and maintaining social relationships such as friendships
1
Scheufele et al. (2006), who investigated the effect of discussion
network heterogeneity on political participation, made this argument
by stating that “an individual must be aware of diversity of discussion
networks in order for such diversity to impact their political behavior”
(p. 740). Research on interpersonal communication has used a similar
approach, relying on the respondents’ self-report about their frequency
of talking with discussants who have similar or different political lean-
ings (e.g., Eveland & Hively, 2009; Huckfeldt & Sprague, 1995). Mutz and
Martin (2001) argued that perceptual measures of political discussion net-
work are appropriate because it must be perceived as similar or different
for such perceptions to stimulate individuals’ cognitive processes. In the
context of the current study, we argue that individuals may need to be
aware of their experience of communicating with diverse others in order
for them to believe that they are competent at working in harmony with
others and that they can become good friends with various others, reflect-
ing the concept of social self-efficacy. Based on these considerations, this
study used the self-report measure of SNS communication network het-
erogeneity.
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(Zullig, Teoli, & Valois, 2011). Many previous studies
have measured social self-efficacy based on some classic
research (e.g., Bandura et al.’s (1996) work about children’s
academic functioning) by appropriately modifying items
for their study contexts (e.g., Muris, 2002; Su et al., 2016;
Wu et al., 2012; Zullig et al., 2011). Based on its rele-
vance to the current study’s campus life setting (see e.g.,
Seo, Houston, Knight, Kennedy, Inglish, 2014 for the con-
text of college students), we measured social self-efficacy
using three items: “I express my opinions well when
friends/classmates have different thoughts than mine,” “I
can work in harmony with my classmates or co-workers,”
and “I can become good friends with people of various
backgrounds.” We asked respondents to rate the extent to
which they agree with these items on a scale ranging from
1 (Strongly Disagree) to 5 (Strongly Agree), and we averaged
the scores of the three items to generate an index of social
self-efficacy (Cronbach’s alpha = .78, M = 4.0, SD = .67).
3.2.3. Satisfaction with campus life
Referring to prior items on life-satisfaction (Diener,
Emmons, Larsen, & Griffin, 1985; Wang et al., 2016), we
measured college students’ satisfaction with campus life
using five items: “In most ways my life at my college is
close to my ideal”, “The conditions of my life at college are
excellent”, “I am satisfied with my life at college”, “I am very
involved with college social activities”, and “I am satisfied
with my social life”. On a scale ranging from 1 (Strongly
Disagree) to 5 (Strongly Agree), we asked respondents to
rate to what extent they agree or disagree with the above
statements. We averaged the scores of each item to cre-
ate an index of satisfaction with campus life (Cronbach’s
alpha = .90, M = 3.80, SD = .86).
3.2.4. Origins
As noted earlier, the variable of student origins was
constructed by categorizing two broad types (in-state
and out-of-state). Out-of-state students included inter-
national students as well. We used survey participants’
responses to test the moderated mediation effect of ori-
gin on the relationship among, SNS network heterogeneity,
social self-efficacy, and satisfaction with campus life (in
state = 35.3%, out-of-state = 64.7%).
3.2.5. Control variables
Previous studies of the effects of SNS use have controlled
for demographic factors that can influence the level of life
satisfaction (Krasnova, Wenninger, Widjaja, & Buxmann,
2013; Valenzuela et al., 2009). For this analysis, we con-
trolled for age, gender, and ethnicity/race among various
demographic characteristics. The average age of the sur-
vey participants was 19.49 (SD = 1.78), 76.4% of them were
female (n = 443), and 74.9% of the respondents were White
(25.1% non-White).
3.3. Statistical analysis
To test the proposed hypotheses and the research ques-
tion, we employed Hayes’ (2013) PROCESS macro, which
simultaneously allows testing of the direct effects calcu-
lated by ordinary least square (OLS) regression models
Please cite this article in press as: Kim, Y., et al. Social media and life satisfaction among college students: A moderated
mediation model of SNS communication network heterogeneity and social self-efficacy on satisfaction with campus life.
The Social Science Journal (2019), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soscij.2018.12.001
between variables and examination of the mediating rela-
tionship with a bootstrapping method well known to
accurately measure the empirical sampling distribution.
Numerous prior studies support this statistical method for
testing mediation and/or moderated mediation relation-
ships (Kim & Chen, 2015; Lecheler, Bos, & Vliegenthart,
2015; MacKinnon, Lockwood, & Williams, 2004).
The number of bootstrap samples for the bias-corrected
bootstrap confidence interval is 5000, and the confidence
interval (CI) of the bootstrapping method is 95%. We
employed PROCESS Model 4 to test the meditating rela-
tionship between perceived SNS communication network
heterogeneity and life satisfaction through social self-
efficacy. In addition, the bootstrapping method with the
PROCESS macro Model 14 was used. This model allowed
us to test the effect of social self-efficacy on satisfaction
with campus life based on respondent origins (in-state vs.
out-of-state). The moderated mediation model was con-
structed upon the relationships among the independent
variable (SNS network heterogeneity), the mediating vari-
able (social self-efficacy), the moderating variable (origins),
and the dependent variable (level of satisfaction with cam-
pus life).
4. Results
The correlation results showed that perceived SNS net-
work heterogeneity is positively correlated with social
self-efficacy (r = .23, p < .01) and satisfaction with campus
life (r = .21, p < .01). In addition, social self-efficacy has a
positive correlation with satisfaction (r = .28, p < .01).
H1 posited that college students’ perceived communi-
cation network heterogeneity on SNS will be positively
associated with social self-efficacy. As shown in Fig. 2,
we found a positive relationship between perceived SNS
network heterogeneity and social self-efficacy (ˇ = .21,
p < .001), meaning that those who frequently interact with
various and heterogeneous others on SNS are more likely
to have an increased sense of social self-efficacy. Thus, our
analysis supports H1. Moreover, we discovered a positive
relationship between social self-efficacy and perceived sat-
isfaction with campus life, which means that those who
have higher levels of social self-efficacy are more likely to
be satisfied with their life on campus (ˇ = .23, p < .001). This
finding supports H2.
Mediation analysis based on the bootstrapping of the
PROCESS macro method showed the effect of communica-
tion with heterogeneous others via SNS on satisfaction. As
presented in Table 1, the 95% bootstrap confidence interval
of the indirect effect of perceived SNS network hetero-
geneity on satisfaction was significantly mediated by an
increased level of social self-efficacy, controlling for age,
gender, and race/ethnicity (b = .04, SE = .02, bootstrapping
CI = [.02, .08]). The result supports H3.
We finally proposed a research question about whether
the conditional indirect effect of perceived SNS network
heterogeneity on satisfaction with campus life through
social self-efficacy would be contingent on student ori-
gins (in-state vs. out-of-state). As Table 2 shows, our
analysis found that perceived SNS network heterogeneity
has a significant conditional indirect effect on satis-
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Y. Kim et al. / The Social Science Journal xxx (2019) xxx–xxx 7

Fig. 2. Results of the direct effect relationships among social media network heterogeneity, social self-efficacy, satisfaction with campus life.
Note: Standardized coefficients are displayed in the path model. N = 580. Respondents’ age, gender, and ethnicity/race were controlled in this path model.
***p < .001.

Table 1
Indirect effects of social media network heterogeneity on satisfaction with campus life through social self-efficacy.

Indirect paths b SE 95% Bootstrap CI

Lower limit Upper limit

SNS communication network heterogeneity

→ Social self-efficacy .04 .02 .02 .08
→ Satisfaction with campus life

Note: Estimates were calculated using the PROCESS macro developed by Hayes (2013). CI = confidence interval. CIs are based on the bootstrapping of 5,000
samples. N = 580. Age, gender, and ethnicity/race were controlled in this analysis.

Table 2
Moderated mediation relationship contingent upon students’ origin (in-state vs. out-of-state).

Mediator Condition b SE 95% Bootstrap CI

Lower limit Upper limit

Social self- In-state .08 .02 .04 .13

efficacy Out-of-state .03 .01 .01 .07

Note: Estimates were calculated using the PROCESS macro developed by Hayes (2013). CI = confidence interval. CIs are based on the bootstrapping of 5,000
samples. N = 580. Age, gender, and ethnicity/race were controlled in this analysis.

faction with campus life through social self-efficacy:
namely, the indirect relationship between perceived SNS
communication network heterogeneity and campus life
satisfaction through social self-efficacy was stronger for in-
state students (b = .08, SE = .02, bootstrapping [CI = .04–.13])
than out-of-state students (b = .03, SE = .01, bootstrapping
[CI = .01–.07]).2
5. Discussion
To extend our understanding of how and why SNS use
influences individuals’ lives, the present research explored
possible mechanisms by which interactions with various
or heterogeneous others on SNS impact college students’
satisfaction with campus life. Considering the fact that
interaction with diverse and heterogeneous people on SNS
gives students opportunities to experience various situ-
ations and events, which may strengthen their internal
social skills, we focused specifically on the psychological
concept of social self-efficacy. The mechanisms we exam-
ined included (1) the direct effects between perceived
SNS communication network heterogeneity and social self-
efficacy and between social self-efficacy and satisfaction,
(2) the indirect effect of perceived SNS communication
network heterogeneity on satisfaction through social self-
2
Following Simmons, Nelson, & Simonsohn’s suggestion (2011), we
conducted additional analyses without control variables. All of the sig-
nificant relationships remain the same without control variables.
efficacy, and (3) the conditional indirect effect contingent
upon student origins (in-state vs. out-of-state).
We verified that the more individuals use SNS to inter-
act with heterogeneous people, the higher their levels
of social self-efficacy to socially connect. For college stu-
dents, social media are crucial hubs for accessing vast
amounts of information related to their everyday lives and
for expanding their interpersonal networks. Above all, we
argue that through SNS interaction with diverse or hetero-
geneous individuals, students train themselves to increase
their internal self-confidence in their campus life. On SNS,
numerous individuals post a variety of contents as a means
of expressing themselves (Kapidzic & Herring, 2015; Lee,
Ahn, & Kim, 2014). These kinds of contents (e.g., images,
videos, and comments) on SNS do not require high levels of
professional knowledge, which encourages users to quickly
grasp popular and important issues or events relevant to
their life. Furthermore, the diversity of information sources
on SNS is a useful asset for students in conversations with
their existing friends or acquaintances online as well as
offline. In particular, the chance that users will develop an
understanding of a wide range of issues or events increases
if they obtain a variety of information from individuals of
diverse backgrounds. This engagement with various per-
spectives and increased understanding of diverse others
could aid in developing individuals’ social efficacy.
University professors or educational consultants should
take into consideration this positive relationship between
SNS communication heterogeneity and social self-efficacy.

Please cite this article in press as: Kim, Y., et al. Social media and life satisfaction among college students: A moderated
mediation model of SNS communication network heterogeneity and social self-efficacy on satisfaction with campus life.
The Social Science Journal (2019), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soscij.2018.12.001
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8 Y. Kim et al. / The Social Science Journal xxx (2019) xxx–xxx
Some students may struggle with campus life. Some may
have a hard time talking to others. Colleges should strive to
minimize the alienation students feel in their on-campus
lives. SNS communities can be useful tools for enhanc-
ing students’ sense of belonging. Existing official college
SNS communities should encourage students to interact
with others and freely express their thoughts. Colleges and
universities should recognize that encouraging students
to increase their communication efficacy is an impor-
tant part of their educational missions. If colleges create
constructive SNS communities, numerous students will
voluntarily share diverse information and discuss their
struggles/difficulties with others. Such interactions would
provide students with social learning benefits such as being
more competent in forming and maintaining social rela-
tionships during their college life.
Beyond investigating the direct relationships between
college students’ perceived SNS communication network
heterogeneity and social self-efficacy and between social
self-efficacy and satisfaction with campus life, we found
that social self-efficacy can play a mediating role in the
relationship between interaction with heterogeneous peo-
ple on SNS and satisfaction with campus life. The findings
of this study add empirical evidence that social media
use is positively associated with individuals’ psychological
well-being rather than relating to negative psychological
outcomes. These results are consistent with the existing lit-
erature showing that social media activities can positively
boost mood (e.g., self-esteem, subjective well-being, hap-
piness) while reducing negative psychological symptoms
such as depression and anxiety (Liu, Tov, Kosinski, Stillwell,
& Qiu, 2015; Nabi, Prestin, & So, 2013).
The present study extends the literature by demonstrat-
ing that a specific aspect of social media use, that is, having
communication network heterogeneity, can play a positive
role when it comes to individuals’ psychological well-
being. Our findings also suggest a possible mechanism of
how this can be the case. Although some previous research
has demonstrated how social media use can increase indi-
viduals’ psychological well-being such as by increasing
perceptions of social support and reducing mental stress
(Nabi et al., 2013), the concept of social self-efficacy has not
been examined as a potential mediating variable. This study
acknowledges that one’s social self-efficacy makes social
media’s positive role possible. With exposure to heteroge-
neous others on social media, students might learn about
the importance of diversity in campus life. In high school,
students may hang out with fairly homogenous friend-
groups in their local communities. The college system is
different in that it enables individuals to mingle with vari-
ous or heterogeneous students who come from pluralistic
communities. Such mingling is the initial stage of learning
about diversity. We found that interactions with diverse
others on SNS indirectly facilitate experiences of cultural
diversity and boost students’ perceptions of social ability
to get along with many people, which is in turn positively
associated with campus life satisfaction.
Another contribution to the current literature is the
finding that social media users’ background (i.e., students’
origin) moderates the relationship between SNS commu-
nication network heterogeneity, social self-efficacy, and
Please cite this article in press as: Kim, Y., et al. Social media and life satisfaction among college students: A moderated
mediation model of SNS communication network heterogeneity and social self-efficacy on satisfaction with campus life.
The Social Science Journal (2019), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soscij.2018.12.001
psychological well-being. The results of this study demon-
strate that the positive relationship between perceived
SNS network heterogeneity and campus life satisfaction
through social self-efficacy was stronger for in-state stu-
dents compared to that of out-of-state students. These
findings suggest that in-state students would become
more socially self-efficacious while interacting with het-
erogeneous people on SNS, which consequently influences
higher levels of their satisfaction with college life.
A possible explanation for this could be that in-state and
out-of-state students may have different levels of familiar-
ity with and resources in the university community such
as information about facilities and locations to enjoy their
everyday life, social capital, social networks (e.g., network
size of close friends, family, and acquaintances), and so
forth. Students who come to a university from out-of-state
or from outside the United States might perceive campus
life in the local college or community as unfamiliar com-
pared to their hometowns. Unfamiliarity with the area is
one of the common concerns for out-of-state students, and
one way to overcome this is to make friends with in-state
students (Koch, 2016). Therefore, while interacting with
various others and getting information about their school
and local community on SNS, in-state students may have
more chances to utilize their prior knowledge and expe-
riences within the community and take care of matters in
their everyday life. Through such interactions, in-state stu-
dents, compared to out-of-students, may be more likely to
increase their social skills to become good friends with peo-
ple of diverse backgrounds and to work in harmony with
their friends and co-workers, which could positively relate
to their satisfaction with campus life.
This study’s findings expand the scope of the literature
by revealing whether and in what ways college students’
SNS interactions with various people are linked to social
self-efficacy, which can increase student satisfaction with
campus life. These findings could assist university staff
and education counsellors to facilitate students’ satisfac-
tion with campus life. Considering the fact that out-of-state
students are more likely to have difficulties that may
result in their dropping out of college than in-state stu-
dents (Jaquette, 2016), it is important for universities to
tailor interventions that will help to keep them. The find-
ings of the current study suggest that universities should
implement strategies to more effectively engage out-of-
state students in interpersonal interaction and online social
events so that students of diverse backgrounds can min-
gle with each other and be exposed to heterogeneous
sources of support, which could positively work for their
social self-efficacy and adjustment to a new environment
as well as their psychological well-being. Engaging in such
events or activities would also enhance in-state students’
social self-efficacy and their satisfaction with campus life,
which might also help constructing a healthy community
by interacting and understanding each other from various
backgrounds. In the long term, the implementation of such
strategies would reinforce the status of colleges and uni-
versities as socially responsible institutions that prioritize
their students and communities.
The findings also offer practical applications to a broader
context such as community organizations and policy mak-
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ers. For instance, local community organizations could
organize social events or campaigns in which heterogenous
community residents have opportunities to get to know
each other and get along together, which might help them
feel socially efficacious and satisfied with their life in the
community. In particular, the observed moderating role of
respondents’ origin suggests that policy makers and com-
munity organizations should pay more attention and come
up with effective policies that could facilitate and encour-
age people from other countries or communities to interact
with various neighbors. Toward this end, policy makers
or local governments should strive to foster integrated
programs or financial support that can stimulate foreign
residents and out-of-towners to more actively interact and
engage in everyday activities with other community mem-
bers. These could include collaborative community-based
projects, giving more opportunities to be active in civic
activities (Nah & Yamamoto, 2017). With such engagement,
those individuals might have greater levels of community
belonging as well as greater levels of social self-efficacy,
which may in turn help their life satisfaction.
Despite its contributions, this study does have lim-
itations that may suggest fruitful directions for future
research. First of all, the findings may be hard to generalize
because the survey respondents were college students in
a specific part of the United States and the study relied on
a convenience sample based on the research participation
pool in the college of communication. In addition, the find-
ings of this study might be different if the samples were
gathered from other places, particularly outside the United
States given that individuals’ levels of perceived social
self-efficacy and patterns of social media usage may be
different in different cultures (see e.g., Schwarzer, Bäßler,
Kwiatek, Schröder, & Zhang, 1997). Recognizing this limi-
tation, future researchers could apply the findings to other
social and cultural settings with representative samples to
better generalize the findings in this area.
Another limitation is related to the association between
SNS communication network heterogeneity and social self-
efficacy. Based on the literature, we note that college
students are well known as representative SNS users who
are more likely to engage in communication behaviors
with various and heterogeneous people in daily campus
life. These activities on SNSs can boost their perceived
social self-efficacy during their campus life given that
the use of information and communication technologies
(ICTs) is helpful for individuals to be more socially flex-
ible in their interpersonal communication (Brown, 2014;
Chen & McGrath, 2003; Zheng et al., 2009). The current
study measured respondents’ SNS use for the platform
they use the most without specifying the various social
media platforms. Based on the findings of the current study,
accordingly, we suggest further research to explore the
systematic differences of communication network hetero-
geneity across types of SNS platforms and their effects on
social self-efficacy given that technological attributes of
ICTs have become extremely diversified (see Chan, 2016;
Keipi et al., 2017).
This study is limited in that it employed self-reported
SNS communication network heterogeneity rather than
measuring respondents’ actual network heterogeneity on
Please cite this article in press as: Kim, Y., et al. Social media and life satisfaction among college students: A moderated
mediation model of SNS communication network heterogeneity and social self-efficacy on satisfaction with campus life.
The Social Science Journal (2019), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soscij.2018.12.001
9
their preferred social networking sites. We argue that
regardless of the number of heterogeneous contacts peo-
ple have in their social network, it is how frequently they
communicate with different others that influences one’s
cognitive processes or beliefs in one’s efficacy. For exam-
ple, those who frequently talk with several heterogeneous
others as opposed to people who have a heterogeneous
social network but rarely communicate with diverse oth-
ers in that network might have greater experiences with
and opportunities to think about diversity even if they have
less network heterogeneity. Some research has demon-
strated that perceptual measures of discussion network
heterogeneity are appropriate because heterogeneity must
be perceived as being similar or different for such per-
ceptions to influence individuals’ cognitive processes and
behaviors (see e.g., Mutz & Martin, 2001). Regardless of
the advantages and disadvantages of the various percep-
tual measures and actual measures of SNS media use, each
approach has a unique value (see e.g., Beck, Dalton, Green,
& Huckfeldt, 2002). Indeed, empirical research shows
that actual structural heterogeneity in terms of political
and racial dimensions is not significantly related to cit-
izens’ participatory behaviors, but individuals’ perceived
frequency of discussion with heterogenous others (i.e.,
individual discussion network heterogeneity) is (Scheufele
et al., 2006). Although these studies demonstrated the
effect of perceived diversity that can influence individuals’
cognitive processes in the political context, we argue that
this can also be the case when it comes to one’s social self-
efficacy because perceived frequency of communicating
with diverse others would help people to feel competent
in engaging in social situations and in forming and main-
taining social relationships. Nevertheless, future research
should cross-validate the findings of the current study (e.g.,
whether the perception and actual measure approaches
produce similar or different results) with objectively mea-
sured data. For instance, future researchers could utilize
log-data analysis measuring respondents’ actual network
heterogeneity by using a social platform app that could be
deployed with the questionnaire that gathers each respon-
dent’s list of friends on social media (see e.g., Nazir, Raza,
& Chuah, 2008).
Finally, the cross-sectional nature of our data precludes
claims of causality and confines our model to correla-
tional relationships. While we address the associations
among variables rather than proposing causal relation-
ships, this study’s motivation implies that satisfaction with
SNS communication could be a causal factor that explains
college students’ satisfaction with campus life via social
self-efficacy. Several of the proposed relationships could
also show reversed directions. For instance, it may also
be likely that individuals who are more satisfied with
their life are more likely to interact with diverse others
on social media. However, the causal directions in this
study are based on the evidence and models laid out in
the relevant literature. Social media activities, for exam-
ple, seem to be a predictor of subjective well-being, as
demonstrated by research using a daily diary method by
which emotional well-being was measured after the social
media sharing of events had taken place (Choi & Toma,
2014). Furthermore, experimental designs and panel stud-
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10 Y. Kim et al. / The Social Science Journal xxx (2019) xxx–xxx
ies provide evidence supporting that it is social media
use that influences individuals’ levels of subjective well-
being (Sagioglou & Greitemeyer, 2014; Tromholt, Lundby,
Andsbjerg, & Wiking, 2015). Other than this supporting
evidence, it is important to note that this study aims to con-
tribute to the current literature on the effects of SNS use
on individuals’ psychological well-being by investigating
potential mediating and moderating variables (i.e., college
students’ social self-efficacy and origin), which have not yet
been investigated in this area. In regard to the role of social
self-efficacy as a mediating variable in the proposed model,
the idea that those who are satisfied with campus life are
likely to have greater levels of social self-efficacy seems
to make less sense than the inverse. Nonetheless, given
that some research demonstrates that individuals’ psy-
chological status such as loneliness influences their social
media use, which in turn affects their mood status (Frison
& Eggermont, 2015), the reciprocal relationship between
SNS communication network heterogeneity, social self-
efficacy, and psychological well-being should be further
investigated using longitudinal or experimental designs to
determine the causality of the relationship.
In spite of these limitations, the findings of the cur-
rent study have significant implications. As one of the first
attempts in this line of research, the results shed light
on the importance of meaningful interaction with het-
erogenous others on social media platforms to promote
psychological well-being. Those who take advantage of the
defining characteristic of social media – that is, staying
connected with various others and communicating with
them – may obtain the benefits of positive outcomes of
social media use. In particular, the findings extend our
understanding of the mechanisms of how such a posi-
tive relationship would happen by providing evidence that
social self-efficacy plays a mediating role in the relation-
ship between SNS communication network heterogeneity
and psychological well-being. Furthermore, we found that
the indirect path from social media use to psychological
well-being via social self-efficacy may be contingent on
social media users’ backgrounds or characteristics, which
is another unique contribution to the existing literature
that suggests practical implications for a variety of social
settings.
Acknowledgement
This work was supported by the Dongguk University
Research Fund of 2017.
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