This paper explores a duality of humanism within the context of psychological distress, focusing on the tension between societal constraints and individual agency in (social) media popular discourses. Specifically, the assignment of individual ‘responsibilities’ in mental well-being is often severely criticism by popular discourses and accused of ‘blaming the victim’. Grounded in a conceptual framework that juxtaposes structural influences against personal coping strategies, we explore a duality of humanism that is taken as contradictory in popular discourses: one perspective emphasizes societal responsibility for mental health, while the other stress on individual agency, i.e. capability and resilience via stress coping awareness and strategies. Using a survey of employed individuals (N=413) in Hong Kong, we assessed work pressure, coping mechanisms, and psychological well-being. Results indicate that while workplace pressure adversely affects psychological health, personal coping mechanisms significantly mitigate distress. Notably, when individuals externalize their struggles—attributing them to societal and environmental factors—their psychological well-being worsens. Conversely, a strong sense of personal responsibility and proactive coping significantly reduces psychological distress, even when controlling for work pressure. Furthermore, we found a negative association between externalization and effective coping, reinforcing the argument that an emphasis on societal factors can conflict with the recognition of individual agency. This study highlights the potential pitfalls of a superficially sympathetic approach to narrate psychological distress, suggesting that it may hinder the empowerment of individual agency and the enhancement of coping skills, raising questions about humanism conceptualizations in prevalent narratives in popular culture and social media.

Authors:
Ho Man Tang, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong

About the Presenter(s)
Alex Ho Man TANG is a Lecturer at the School of Journalism and Communication at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. His research interests converge at the intersection of new media, cultural identities and practices, and political communication.

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