Designing Positive Psychology Interventions for Social Media: Cross-Sectional Web-Based Experiment With Young Adults...

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Oncology
• Digital Health

Background:

• Young adults (18-39 years) with cancer experience unique psychosocial risks.
• Positive psychology interventions delivered via social media may mitigate these risks.
• Intervention success depends on message engagement and perceived feasibility.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate if social media messages from positive psychology interventions increase intentions for activity engagement and positive reactions among young adults with cancer.
• To identify sociodemographic and cancer-related factors influencing intervention reception.
• To determine perceived downsides affecting intervention feasibility.

Main Methods:

• A randomized web-based experiment involving young adults with cancer (ages 18-39).
• Participants viewed social media messages promoting acts of kindness or social connectedness, with or without social context cues.
• Measures included intentions, self-efficacy, perceived social presence, forecasted positivity resonance, and perceived downsides.

Main Results:

• Over 80% of participants intended to engage in activities, perceived social presence, and forecasted positive resonance.
• High self-efficacy (mean 70.7%) was reported, with most perceiving no downsides.
• Black young adults reported lower engagement intentions and resonance than White young adults; those in active treatment showed greater intentions.

Conclusions:

• Social media positive psychology interventions are perceived as acceptable and feasible for young adults with cancer.
• Messages effectively promoted social connectedness and acts of kindness, with participants anticipating positive social engagement.
• These findings support the development of scalable, age-appropriate interventions to enhance psychosocial health in this population.