Coping with Social Media Envy in Luxury Consumption: The Role of Social Networking Site Actions.

This article investigates how different types of consumer envy—benign envy and malicious envy—affect behaviors on social networking sites (SNSs), particularly Instagram, in the context of luxury product and service consumption. Drawing on social comparison and coping theories, the research identifies three categories of SNS actions: self-enhancement actions (improving one's own status), positive interactions (friendly engagement with the envied), and negative interactions (hostile behaviors toward the envied). Across four studies, benign envy was found to motivate positive SNS interactions and self-enhancement behaviors that help restore a consumer's sense of belonging and distinctiveness, while malicious envy led to negative interactions that diminish belonging and result in maladaptive coping and negative self-perceptions. The study also developed a new, validated scale for measuring contemporary SNS actions on Instagram and highlights managerial implications for brands and social media managers aiming to foster benign envy to encourage positive consumer engagement and community building.