How public interactions via WeChat moments predict the emotional well-being of Chinese seniors and emerging seniors: The moderating roles of perceived self-network discrepancy and age

Abstract

The present study examined how engaging in public interactions via WeChat Moments (i.e., interactions all WeChat contacts can access) was related to the emotional well-being of Chinese seniors and emerging seniors (50 years or older). Results of an online survey (N = 506) demonstrated that perceived educational self-network discrepancy of WeChat network moderated the relationship between public interactions and emotional well-being such that only at a high level of perceived educational self-network discrepancy public interactions exhibited a significant negative relationship with emotional well-being. Additionally, the interaction between public interactions and perceived educational/social class self-network discrepancy on emotional well-being was further moderated by the participants’ age. Specifically, the relationship between public interactions and emotional well-being was only significant and negative at high levels of perceived educational/social class self-network discrepancy among older Chinese seniors and emerging seniors, whereas this relationship was not significant at any level of perceived educational/social class self-network discrepancy among their younger counterparts. This study develops the scholarship on social networking services and well-being by suggesting that the responses one receives from their online network can have a critical impact on their well-being and provides implications about extending socioemotional selectivity theory.