Abstract. The emergence of social media has revolutionized communication and has had a profound effect on many aspects of motherhood. Image-centric social media, despite its overwhelming popularity, has faced much criticism for over-idealistic portrayals and the pressures it may place on women throughout pregnancy and the early years of their child’s life. This research aimed to determine whether a significant relationship exists between postnatal anxiety and Instagram usage in mothers with young children. The associational, cross-sectional design uses a sample of 210 mothers, aged 22–45, who have one or more children aged under 5 years. An online questionnaire measured anxiety, Instagram usage, and several potentially moderating traits. We found that the relationship between anxiety and online engagement with InstaMums – mothers made famous by Instagram – was moderated by both social comparison orientation and self-esteem. Engagement with InstaMums was associated with greater anxiety in those with higher social comparison orientation; it was also associated with greater anxiety in those with lower self-esteem. These findings are discussed in connection with social comparison theory, implications for healthy social media use, as well as avenues for future research.

中文翻译：

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Instagram 使用、InstaMums 和幼儿母亲的焦虑

摘要。社交媒体的出现彻底改变了沟通方式，并对母性的许多方面产生了深远的影响。以形象为中心的社交媒体尽管广受欢迎，但因过度理想化的描绘以及在整个怀孕期间和孩子生命的早期可能给女性带来的压力而面临很多批评。这项研究旨在确定产后焦虑与有幼儿的母亲使用 Instagram 之间是否存在显着关系。关联性横断面设计使用了 210 名母亲的样本，年龄在 22-45 岁之间，她们有一个或多个 5 岁以下的孩子。一份在线问卷测量了焦虑、Instagram 的使用和几个潜在的缓和特征。我们发现，焦虑和与 InstaMums（因 Instagram 出名的母亲）的在线互动之间的关系受到社会比较取向和自尊的调节。与 InstaMums 互动与那些具有较高社会比较取向的人的焦虑有关；它还与自尊心较低的人更焦虑有关。这些发现将与社会比较理论、对健康社交媒体使用的影响以及未来研究的途径进行讨论。