How Does Digital Connection Shape Cultural Adaptation? Differentiated Social Media Use, Intercultural Communication Self-Efficacy, and Adaptation Among International Students in China

Evidence regarding the adaptive role of social media in acculturation remains fragmented, often overlooking behavioral nuances and contextual constraints. This study examined a moderated mediation model disentangling how three types of social media use—passive, active social, and active non-social—are associated with psychological and sociocultural adaptation through intercultural communication self-efficacy. Participants were 2,478 international students in China ( M = 23.67 years, SD = 3.82 years) who completed a multi-language survey. Structural equation modeling indicated that active social and active non-social use were positively associated with adaptation outcomes via enhanced intercultural communication self-efficacy, whereas passive use showed no significant association with efficacy beliefs. Furthermore, perceived cultural distance significantly moderated these indirect pathways; the adaptive associations between active engagement and self-efficacy were substantially attenuated for students perceiving high cultural disparity. These findings challenge universalist assumptions of digital empowerment, identifying intercultural communication self-efficacy as a core cognitive engine and perceived cultural distance as a critical boundary condition in digital acculturation.