Girls aged 11-13 who participated in the research, published in Nature Communications, were asked to indicate how satisfied they were with their lives a year after being surveyed about their use of social media. The more time they spent on social media, the less happy they reported being. In boys, this negative impact was most apparent between the ages of 14 and 15.
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Striking conclusions
The study wasn’t just conducted among young teens. The scientists looked at data from some 72,000 British citizens of all ages collected between 2011 and 2018. A less obvious discovery was also made.
For example, 16- to 21-year-olds would be less happy if they spent either a lot or very little time on social media. The scientists even speak of a scenario where older teens who have been on social media ‘just long enough’ would be happiest.
Long-term use of social media resulted in any age group a negative impact. The researchers do not make any statements about the impact in children under 11 years of age and people over 60 years of age, because the data from these groups was not accurate enough.
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Also positive effects
The researchers say many factors that may play a role in the study have not yet been addressed. For example, the precise nature of the content of messages viewed is of great importance. Also, social media that allows teens to connect with friends could provide valuable support.
Professor Bernadka Dubicka, an expert in childhood mental health, says to the BBC that the research is important because it gets rid of ‘the useless’ dichotomy‘ about whether or not using social media is harmful. According to Dubicka, it is very important to build on this research, ‘to understand both the harmful and the supportive role of social media in the lives of young people’.
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Internal report on impact Instagram
It’s not the first time research shows that overuse of social media can negatively impact teens. An internal report from Facebook came out in September last year to the light, which found that as many as one in three teenage girls who used Instagram had a lower self-esteem as a result. Whistleblower Frances Haugen said the company put profits above user safety.
Shortly afterwards, the company announced a number of measures to take to protect teenagers. These would include notifications to encourage teens to take a break and systems to direct them to content that would be less harmful. Also competitors such as TikTok took measures to prevent young users from receiving malicious messages.
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