The Relationship Between Social Comparison and Anxiety Among Social Media Using University Students
Perbandingan sosial, yang diperparah oleh paparan konten ideal di media sosial, menjadi fenomena yang sering dialami mahasiswa (emerging adults) dan memicu tekanan emosional. Penelitian ini menggunakan pendekatan kuantitatif dengan desain korelasional. Instrumen yang digunakan meliputi Iowa-Netherlands Comparison Orientation Measure (INCOM) untuk mengukur perbandingan sosial dan Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI) untuk mengukur kecemasan. Sebanyak 254 mahasiswa berusia 18–25 tahun menjadi partisipan melalui penyebaran kuesioner secara daring. Hasil analisis deskriptif menunjukkan bahwa tingkat perbandingan sosial responden cenderung berada pada kategori tinggi, sementara tingkat kecemasan mayoritas berada pada kategori berat. Hasil uji korelasi Spearman menunjukkan adanya hubungan positif dan signifikan antara perbandingan sosial dengan kecemasan (ρ = 0.387). Temuan ini menunjukkan bahwa semakin tinggi kecenderungan mahasiswa melakukan perbandingan sosial, semakin tinggi pula tingkat kecemasan yang mereka alami.
Social comparison, exacerbated by exposure to idealized content on social media, is a phenomenon often experienced by college students (emerging adults) and triggers emotional distress. This study uses a quantitative approach with a correlational design. The instruments used include the Iowa-Netherlands Comparison Orientation Measure (INCOM) to measure social comparison and the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI) to measure anxiety. A total of 254 students aged 18–25 years participated through an online questionnaire. Descriptive analysis results showed that the respondents' social comparison levels tended to be in the high category, while the majority's anxiety levels were in the severe category. The results of the Spearman correlation test showed a positive and significant relationship between social comparison and anxiety (ρ = 0.387; p = 0.000). These findings indicate that the higher the tendency of students to make social comparisons, the higher their anxiety levels.