Empathy, Social Media and Mental Health Indicators in Colombian' Social Crises

Evidence suggests that social crises impact mental health. However, empathy and access to information through social media might moderate its effect. This research examines the impact of empathy and social media usage and their relation to mental health among Colombians in two social crises: 1) the COVID-19 outbreak and 2) the Colombian national strike along 2021. Data from 314 adults were collected via eight online questionaries. Results indicated that participants in both crises spent vast amount of time in social media sites; positive association between usage of social media networks, anxiety, and traumatic stress measures; negative association between empathy and mental health indicators; and lower well-being and mental health indicators in participants that spent more time in social media sites. Moreover, regression analyses revealed that participants spending more time in social media with high empathy indicators and lower educational level are more likely to report worse mental health measures. In summary, this study has found that empathy moderates the relationship between social media usage and mental health in both social crises.