  We argue that the use of online networks may threaten subjective well-being
in several ways, due to the inherent attributes of Internet-mediated
interaction and through its effects on social trust and sociability. We test
our hypotheses on a representative sample of the Italian population. We find a
significantly negative correlation between online networking and well-being.
This result is partially confirmed after accounting for endogeneity. We explore
the direct and indirect effects of the use of social networking sites (SNS) on
well-being in a SEM analysis. We find that online networking plays a positive
role in subjective well-being through its impact on physical interactions,
whereas SNS use is associated with lower social trust. The overall effect of
networking on individual welfare is significantly negative.
