Scrolling Toward Dissatisfaction? A Longitudinal Examination of Short-Form Video Use, Body Dissatisfaction, and...

Although social media use is associated with disordered eating, prior research has predominantly focused on adolescent and university student populations; evidence from adult occupational groups remains limited. The present study examined the longitudinal association between short-form video use and disordered eating among Chinese female nurses, specifically examining the mediating role of body dissatisfaction and the moderating role of sociocultural attitudes toward appearance.

A two-wave longitudinal design was employed. Participants were 400 registered female nurses recruited from a hospital in Wuhan, China, at baseline (T1), with 270 retained at the four-month follow-up (T2). Measures assessed short-form video use and sociocultural attitudes at T1 and body dissatisfaction and disordered eating at T2. Structural equation modeling with bootstrapping was conducted to test mediation and moderated mediation hypotheses.

Short-form video use exhibited a significant indirect effect on subsequent disordered eating through increased body dissatisfaction. This indirect pathway was moderated by sociocultural attitudes toward appearance: the association between short-form video use and body dissatisfaction was stronger among nurses with higher levels of perceived media pressure and thin-ideal internalization.

These findings identify body dissatisfaction as a key psychological mechanism linking short-form video use to disordered eating and highlight sociocultural attitudes as critical susceptibility factors shaping vulnerability to media effects. Overall, this study extends media effects research to adult occupational populations and has important implications for prevention and intervention strategies to protect nurses' psychological well-being in the digital age.