Scrolling, Posting, and Dominating: The Effect of Social Media usage on Self-enhancement and Dominance

ABSTRACT

Social media has become deeply embedded in both personal and professional spheres, yet its spillover effects on workplace behavior remain underexplored. This research uncovers a novel unintended consequence: social media use increases individuals’ tendency to engage in dominance behaviors. We propose that social media use heightens self-enhancement motives, which in turn promote dominance. Across five studies using a mixed-methods approach and diverse samples from China, India, and the United States, we find consistent support for this theorizing. In a field study in India, leaders’ social media use was positively associated with follower-rated dominance (Study 1). A pre-registered experience sampling study of U.S. employees conducted over two weeks replicated this effect (Study 2). Study 3A manipulated social media use among Chinese adults to establish causal evidence. We further hypothesized that this effect would weaken when social media is used to connect with others rather than for self-promotion. Two pre-registered experiments (Studies 3B and 3C) supported this moderation, showing that connection-oriented use dampens the link between social media use and dominance. This research advances understanding of how social media influences interpersonal behavior in organizational contexts.