The effect of social comparison tendency on SNS addiction tendency is well known, but the psychological process through which it occurs remains unclear. Therefore, this study aimed to examine whether experiential avoidance mediates the relationship between social comparison tendency and SNS addiction tendency, and whether self-compassion moderates this mediating effect. Data were collected through an online survey of 316 individuals aged 18 to 47, and the significance of the moderated mediation effect was tested. First, significant correlations were found among social comparison tendency, experiential avoidance, self-compassion, and SNS addiction tendency. Second, the mediating effect of experiential avoidance in the relationship between social comparison tendency and SNS addiction tendency was significant. Third, self-compassion moderated the relationship between experiential avoidance and SNS addiction tendency. Fourth, the mediating effect of experiential avoidance on the relationship between social comparison tendency and SNS addiction tendency was found to be moderated by self-compassion. These findings not only revealed that individuals with high social comparison tendencies may develop SNS addiction through experiential avoidance, but also that this pathway depends on the individual's level of self-compassion, with higher self-compassion mitigating the effect of experiential avoidance on SNS addiction tendency. These results provide meaningful implications for understanding clients with high social comparison tendencies in counseling and psychotherapy settings and offer guidance for effective therapeutic interventions.
