Social Media and Teen Mental Health
The U.S. Surgeon General’s 2023 Social Media and Youth Mental Health advisory outlines the latest scientific evidence regarding social media’s effects on youth mental health. The report recommends actions that policymakers, technology companies, parents and others can take to ensure the online safety of young people. This post highlights key findings from the advisory.
Key Takeaways
- Teenagers use of social media is widespread and pervasive.
- Social media use can benefit teens, but it can also be detrimental to a young user’s health, leading to tech addiction, sleep deficits, increased levels of stress and more.
- Social norms and expectations, a fear of missing out and a desire to connect with friends are some of the factors fueling social media among teens.
- Families, tech companies, policymakers and others must work together to create safer and healthier social media environment for young people.
Key Drivers of Social Media Use in Teens
A number of factors drive social media use among teens. These include:
- A desire to connect with others.
- A fear of missing out.
- Social pressure and expectations.
- Hyperconnectivity to technology.
- Feelings of stress, anxiety, depression or boredom.
Social media tools are, by design, filled with click-bait content and accessible 24–7. These tools can elicit a gratifying dopamine response in some users that can lead to psychological cravings and addiction.
Current Levels of Teen Social Media Use
Virtually all teens (95%) ages 13 to 17 use social media, with more than 1 in 3 reporting that they use it “almost constantly.” While most U.S. social media platforms require users to be at least 13 years old, nearly 40% of kids ages 8 to 12 use social media and are in Generation Alpha. The advisory also noted:
- Adolescents who use social media more than three hours per day face twice the risk of experiencing poor mental health outcomes.
- A recent survey found that eighth and 10th grade students spend an average of 3.5 hours per day on these platforms.
How Does Social Media Affect Teens
Social media use can affect teenagers in both positive and negative ways. Researchers are still evaluating the long-term risks of social media, due to the newness of the technology. However, a growing body of evidence strongly links heavy social media use among teenagers to a number of negative outcomes.
Negative Psychological Effects of Social Media on Teen Mental Health
Numerous studies show that higher levels of social media use among children and adolescents are linked to adverse effects:
- depression and anxiety;
- inadequate sleep (which can disrupt neurological development and lead to depression and suicidal behaviors;
- low self-esteem;
- poor body image;
- eating disorder behaviors; and
- online harassment.
These risks are greater for girls versus boys and for those already experiencing mental health issues. Additional risks include:
- Nearly 2 in 3 adolescents are “often” or “sometimes” exposed to hate-based content on social media.
- Studies have found a connection between social media cyberbullying and depression among young people.
- Teen girls and LGBTQ youth are more likely to experience cyberbullying and online harassment, which can lead to negative emotions.
Benefits of Social Media on Teen Mental Health
There are also pros to teens using social media, such as:
- Social engagement, including keeping in touch with existing friends and classmates as well as discovering new connections and networks of mutually shared interests.
- Opportunities for creativity and self-expression.
- Civic and community engagement.
- Expanded access to information and services (for example: online therapy).
Social media use can be particularly useful for connecting marginalized young people, such as sexual and gender minorities. For instance, according to the Surgeon General’s advisory, social media may boost the mental health of LGBTQ youth by:
- fostering connections with peers;
- facilitating identity development; and
- enabling social support.
Adolescence Is a Vulnerable Phase of Development
The mounting evidence regarding social media’s adverse effects on youth is especially concerning given that adolescence is a critical period of development, when different areas of the brain begin to integrate and the prefrontal cortex develops at an accelerated pace.
In this phase of development, the adolescent brain is especially open to learning and growing, and teens may have intensified sensitivity to the nature of social media, according to the Surgeon General’s advisory.
Adolescence also involves profound physiological changes — young people are simultaneously navigating increasing autonomy, forming their identities, developing relationships and more. Given these factors, experts warn that social media use during this vulnerable phase warrants particular attention.
Signs Social Media Use is Negatively Impacting Your Teen
There is no set playbook to identify unhealthy social media use. Factors to watch out for include social media use that leads a teen to:
- Miss out on real-world friendships and socialization opportunities.
- Become highly self-critical (often due to comparisons to false realities presented on social media).
- Experience cyberbullying.
- Feel increased levels of depression, anxiety, stress or isolation.
- Struggle to concentrate at school or at work.
- Fail to sleep soundly or get a good night’s rest.
- Stop practicing positive self-care and self-reflection.
How to Protect Teens on Social Media
While social media offers benefits for some, growing evidence of its potential harm to many children and youth has led the Surgeon General to issue an urgent, cross-sector call to action.
The Surgeon General notes that policymakers, tech companies, researchers, funders, families, advocates and others must work together on multi-pronged strategies to create safe and healthy social media environments for young people. The call to action also includes targeted guidance for key groups.
For Policymakers
The Surgeon General advises policymakers to take steps to strengthen protections for children interacting with all social media platforms. This advice involves:
- Developing age-appropriate health and safety standards.
- Requiring a higher standard of data privacy for children.
- Strengthening and enforcing age minimums.
Additional guidance to policymakers includes:
- Ensuring technology companies share data relevant to the health effects of their platforms.
- Supporting increased funding for future research on both the benefits and harms of social media use and other technology and digital media use for children, adolescents and families.
For Technology Companies
The Surgeon General’s advice to technology companies calls for:
- Adequately and independently assessing the impact of social media on children and adolescents.
- Prioritizing user health and safety when designing and developing social media products and services.
- Formalizing a strategy for investigating the requests and complaints of young people, families, educators and others.
For Parents and Caregivers
Action items for parents and caregivers covers:
- Creating a family media plan with agreed-upon expectations to establish healthy social media boundaries at home.
- Creating tech-free zones and encourage in-person interactions, which may involve limiting use of devices around bedtime and mealtimes, prioritizing family relationships and building social bonds.
- Modeling responsible social media behavior, as children often learn from what they see around them.
Learn More About Social Media and Teen Mental Health
- Learn more about the effects of social media on mental health.
- Read the U.S. Surgeon General’s full Social Media and Youth Mental Health advisory.
- See the American Psychological Association’s 2023 Health Advisory on Social Media Use in Adolescence.
- Learn more about Gen Z and Mental Health.
- View this Tip Sheet on Social Media Use and Mental Health.
- Access state and U.S. data on children and teens with anxiety or depression and all mental health data on the KIDS COUNT® Data Center.
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