Loneliness and Hobby Adoption:
Social Networking During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Keywords:
uses and gratifications, personality factors, social media, social networking, Facebook, TikTok, Instagram, Loneliness, hobbiesAbstract
In this exploratory study we sought to understand the personality factors and motivations for using social networking sites (SNSs) during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States. We also explore the role of SNSs in hobby adoption and online sharing behavior during a period of isolation and social distancing. Our results indicate that loneliness was the most common motive for social media use. The personality trait, neuroticism, was the most significant predictor of SNS use. Our analysis included social networking platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and TikTok. Our inclusion of TikTok provides preliminary evidence of why people use this popular new platform. While many respondents adopted a hobby during the pandemic, those scoring high for neuroticism were the most influenced by SNSs to take up a hobby, while also being the least motivated to share their new hobby on social media.
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