Research points to a connection between social media use and mental health problems.
Get the facts to better understand your child’s brain.
TEEN BRAINS
Teen brains are extra-sensitive to social interactions and peer approval.
Brain changes during puberty make teens vulnerable to anxiety and depression.
Teens already at higher risk for mental health problems are most likely to be negatively affected by social media.
APP DESIGN
Social media is designed to hook teens with infinite scroll, autoplay, and notifications.
Platform algorithms serve up tailored content to keep kids scrolling.
What you can do: learn how to use parental controls, establish a family media plan, and model good “phone hygiene” for your child.
THE RESEARCH
Growing evidence points to a connection between time spent on social media and mental health problems among youth.
Teen girls are more at risk than are boys.
It’s not all bad: screen time isn’t universally harmful, and some young people find support in online communities (eg LGBTQ+ youth).
“Children compare themselves to others via social media, and that can lead to feelings of inadequacy, social isolation and depression and anxiety.”
– Dimitri Christakis, editor in chief of JAMA Pediatrics
The Research
The Consensus
Most researchers agree that increased social media use, particularly on platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook, correlates with poorer mental health in adolescents. This correlation appears stronger in teen girls than in boys.
However, not all screen time is detrimental. Texting, emails, academic work, and video games often have neutral or positive impacts.
Limitations
The extent and significance of the findings are debated among researchers.
Data is mostly correlative - meaning it’s unclear if people who use more social media may become more depressed, or, if people who are more depressed may be more active on social media.
There is a lack of long-term studies, studies of newer platforms such as TikTok, and studies specifically about social media use.
Samples are potentially non-representative.
There is a growing body of evidence linking teen social media use and poor mental health.
We've put all the best research in one place.
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Association of Habitual Checking Behaviors on Social Media With Longitudinal Functional Brain Development - JAMA Pediatrics, 2023
Getting Fewer “Likes” Than Others on Social Media Elicits Emotional Distress Among Victimized Adolescents - Society for Research in Child Development, 2020
The internet and children’s psychological wellbeing - Journal of Health Economics, 2020
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Does time spent using social media impact mental health?: An eight year longitudinal study - Computers in Human Behavior
A systematic review: the influence of social media on depression, anxiety and psychological distress in adolescents - International Journal of Adolescence and Youth, 2019
Time Spent on Social Media and Risk of Depression in Adolescents: A Dose–Response Meta-Analysis - International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 2022
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The social media diet: A scoping review to investigate the association between social media, body image and eating disorders amongst young people - PLOS Global Public Health, 2023
Contemporary screen use and symptoms of muscle dysmorphia among a national sample of Canadian adolescents and young adults - Eating and Weight Disorders - Studies on Anorexia, Bulimia and Obesity, 2023
The relationship between problematic Instagram use and eating disorders psychopathology: an explanatory structural equation model - Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 2023
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Instagram Use and Body Dissatisfaction: The Mediating Role of Upward Social Comparison with Peers and Influencers among Young Females - International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 2022
Social Media Use and Adolescents’ Self-Esteem: Heading for a Person-Specific Media Effects Paradigm - Journal of Communication, 2021
Do you dare to compare? The key characteristics of social media users who frequently make online upward social comparisons - International Journal of Human–Computer Interaction, 2022
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Instagram Use and Body Dissatisfaction: The Mediating Role of Upward Social Comparison with Peers and Influencers among Young Females - International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 2022
Daily Use of Social Media Is Associated with More Body Dissatisfaction of Teenage Girls in a Large Cross-Cultural Survey - I Z A Institute of Labor Economics, 2022
Adolescent well-being amid the COVID-19 pandemic: Are girls struggling more than boys? - JCPP Advances, 2021