Social media See all topics Follow

Editor’s note: If you or someone you know is struggling with mental health, help is available. Dial or text 988 or visit 988lifeline.org for free and confidential support.

Parents should avoid preteens’ use of smartphones and social media, according to new research. A study released Monday found that using smartphones before age 13 could damage kids’ mental health.

Smartphone use by children younger than 13 was associated with suicidal thoughts, worse emotional regulation, lower self-worth and detachment from reality, especially among girls, according to the study, which was published in the Journal of the Human Development and Capabilities.

For every year before age 13 that a person acquired a smartphone, their mental health and well-being were likely to be lower, the study found.

That’s likely because the kids who used smartphones before turning 13 accessed social media more and experienced sleep disruptions, cyberbullying and negative family relationships, according to the study. The data is based on self-reports in a survey of nearly 2 million people in 163 countries.

Kids who used smartphones before age 13 faced sleep disruptions, cyberbullying and negative family relationships, according to a new study. Elva Etienne/Moment RF/Getty Images

The results were so stark that the researchers called for global restrictions to prevent children younger than 13 from using smartphones and social media.

“This calls for urgent action limiting access of children under 13 to smartphones as well as more nuanced regulation on the digital environment young people are exposed to,” said lead study author Tara Thiagarajan, founder and chief scientist of Sapien Labs, the nonprofit that runs the survey.

While previous research focused on how smartphone use is related to anxiety and depression, this survey looked at symptoms not commonly studied, including emotional regulation and self-worth, and found they are very significant, said Thiagarajan, who is based in Arlington, Virginia.

The results were self-reported, which means they weren’t independently verified by researchers. In addition, the study can’t pinpoint what types of smartphone use drove the results and can’t account for how they might change as technologies evolve, Thiagarajan said.

Hold off on social media until 16

Still, this research certainly has me convinced it’s a terrible idea to give kids smartphones before age 13. When I speak to parents in schools, parent groups and other community spaces, I suggest not letting kids use social media until age 16. Solid research out of the United Kingdom shows that using social media during puberty is associated with lower life-satisfaction a year later.

Social psychologist Jonathan Haidt also suggested waiting until age 16 to let kids use social media in his best-selling book “The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness.”

While it may seem near impossible to hold off this long, it won’t be if we talk to the parents of our kids’ friends and collectively agree not to allow our children to use social apps until this age.

In all of my talks across the country as an expert on how social media affects women and girls, I have yet to meet a single parent or guardian who has said they’re excited for their kid to use social media. Instead, they worry their kids will be deprived of social opportunities if they’re not on social media. That’s why getting the parents of their friends involved is the key.

The group Wait Until 8th has created a pledge parents can sign collectively promising not to let kids use smartphones until the end of eighth grade. Other groups have created similar pledges.

“Check to see if there is one in your community, and if not and it feels important to you, consider starting one,” said Melissa Greenberg, a clinical psychologist at Princeton Psychotherapy Center in New Jersey who was not involved in the study. “Even if people aren’t already talking about it, they may be relieved if you start the conversation.”

In addition, “parents could seek schools for their children with stronger policies around smartphones on campus” or push for better policies in their kids’ schools, Thiagarajan said.

But the researchers warned that parents can’t solve these problems individually without societal solutions. After all, even if I don’t allow my daughters to use social media before age 16 and convince their friends’ parents to do the same, that won’t stop them from being exposed to these apps by other kids on places like the school bus or after-school events.

That’s why parents “could also be a more active voice in the debates on regulation,” Thiagarajan said.

Check in with your kids

If you have already let your child use a smartphone before age 13 or are just worried about the results, “don’t panic,” Greenberg said.

“If you are concerned but don’t notice any of these symptoms in your child, you can still talk to them to let them know that some people struggle with anxiety, low self-worth and intense emotions,” she said. “You can let them know that there is help available should they ever need it, and you can invite them to come to you if they are ever struggling or need support.”

Parents can still make changes if their children already have smartphones, Kara Alaimo says. StockPlanets/E+/Getty Images

If you do notice these symptoms in your child, find a licensed professional who can help, she said.

It’s OK to make changes

What happens if your child already has a smartphone? “You may feel stuck when you read things like this because you feel like you can’t go back,” Greenberg said. That’s not true. “Don’t be afraid to change course if you feel like what you’ve already done isn’t working for your child or for your family,” she said.

Parents can think about options such as using parental controls, switching to a flip phone, or deleting apps or features, Greenberg said.

Of course, kids may not react pleasantly to such a change, but don’t let that stop you from acting if you think it would benefit them, she said.

Parents can use this script, Greenberg suggested: “When we first gave you your smartphone, there were things we didn’t know about how it might impact you. There are a lot of scientists and doctors who are doing research on the effects smartphones are having on kids, and we’re learning a lot more than we knew before. We have to make some changes because we want to make sure that we’re doing the healthiest thing for you.”

If kids get upset, be sympathetic to their concerns, she said. “Adults don’t always respond in the most mature way when you take something away or ask them to change a habit, and we can’t expect that our kids will either,” Greenberg said.

She suggested parents talk about your own struggles to get your smartphone use right as a way of (literally) connecting and acknowledging that it’s difficult for all of us to resist their pull.

What can you do now that you know it could be quite dangerous to allow young kids to use smartphones? If your child doesn’t yet have one, start talking to other parents in your community to collectively agree not to let your kids get them until they’re older.

Keeping our kids away from smartphones could be one of the smartest decisions parents make.

EDITOR’S NOTE: Kara Alaimo is an associate professor of communication at Fairleigh Dickinson University. Her book “Over the Influence: Why Social Media Is Toxic for Women and Girls — And How We Can Take It Back” was published in 2024.

Fears that smartphones, tablets and other devices could drive dementia in later life have been challenged by research that found lower rates of cognitive decline in older people who used the technology.

An analysis of published studies that looked at technology use and mental skills in more than 400,000 older adults found that over-50s who routinely used digital devices had lower rates of cognitive decline than those who used them less.

It is unclear whether the technology staves off mental decline, or whether people with better cognitive skills simply use them more, but the scientists say the findings question the claim that screen time drives what has been called “digital dementia”.

“For the first generation that was exposed to digital tools, their use is associated with better cognitive functioning,” said Dr Jared Benge, a clinical neuropsychologist in UT Health Austin’s Comprehensive Memory Center. “This is a more hopeful message than one might expect given concerns about brain rot, brain drain, and digital dementia.”

Benge and his colleague Dr Michael Scullin, a cognitive neuroscientist at Baylor University in Texas, analysed 57 published studies that examined the use of digital technology in 411,430 adults around the world. The average age was 69 years old and all had a cognitive test or diagnosis.

The scientists found no evidence for the digital dementia hypothesis, which suggests that a lifetime of using digital technology drives mental decline. Rather, they found that using a computer, smartphone, the internet or some combination of these was associated with a lower risk of cognitive impairment. The details have been published in Nature Human Behaviour.

More work is needed to explain the findings, but the researchers suspect a two-way relationship underpins the results. In this scenario, people with better thinking skills are more likely to use digital devices, but there are also cognitive benefits to be had from embracing the technology.

“We think the three Cs might be important: complexity, connection and compensatory behaviours,” Benge told the Guardian. Digital tools could help people engage in complex activities and boost their social connections, both of which appeared to be good for the ageing brain, he said. The technology also allowed people to compensate for cognitive decline and function more easily, for example by using GPS to find their way or setting reminders to pay bills or take medicines, he added.

Writing in the journal, the authors suggested the pros and cons of smartphones and other devices on the ageing brain depended on how they were used. “Using digital devices in the way that we use televisions – passive and sedentary, both physically and mentally – is not likely to be beneficial,” said Scullin. “But, our computers and smartphones also can be mentally stimulating, afford social connections, and provide compensation for cognitive abilities that are declining with ageing. These latter types of uses have long been regarded as beneficial for cognitive ageing.”

Prof Peter Etchells, the director of the Centre for Research on Science and Society at Bath Spa University in the UK, said: “This is a really nice study that shows the research area is starting to mature. It’s starting to move beyond the blind acceptance that screen time is something useful to talk about. It’s starting to pose what the next questions should be.”

Sam Gilbert, a professor of cognitive neuroscience at University College London, said the study showed “a clear link” between digital technology usage and preserved cognitive ability in older age.

“The explanation for this link is still not fully clear: we cannot be sure whether technology usage itself preserves cognitive ability, whether preserved cognitive ability leads to more frequent use of technology, or – most likely – some combination of the two. Nevertheless, this work challenges alarmist ideas about so-called ‘digital dementia’ and instead suggests that using digital technology can be good for brain health.”

Dr Vincent O’Sullivan, an economist at the University of Limerick in Ireland, also welcomed the study. “The common perception, at least among media commentators, is that technology is making us stupid or forgetful. These researchers, through meticulous analysis of a vast academic literature, show that there is a positive association between good cognitive health and digital technology usage.

“Once we understand the mechanism, we can hopefully design interventions for those at risk of cognitive decline.”

You may also like:

Gen Z is the largest generation in American history, currently making up 27% of the population in the US.

Being born between the years of 1997 and 2012, individuals in Gen Z are now between 13 and 28 years old. Many are now entering the full-time workforce and increasing their purchasing power.

How is this generation impacting the world? Here are seven Gen Z trends to watch in 2025 and beyond.

Instantly Analyze

Any Market Get My Free Report 👉

1. Driven by digital

Gen Z are “digital natives” in the truest sense of the term.

The stats prove this.

More than 95% of Gen Zers own a smartphone, 83% own a laptop, and 78% own an internet-connected gaming console.

The “Xbox Game Pass” offers users a Netflix-like experience for video gaming and its popularity is soaring (475% in 5 years).

In fact, they’ve been exposed to tech from a young age, especially when compared to previous generations.

Older Millennials got their first cell phone at an average age of 20. Younger Millennials started at 16. Gen Zers had their own phones by the time they were 12.

Trends show that this generation is becoming more and more centered on tech.

One survey found that more than half of Gen Zers feel more insecure without their smartphone versus without their wallet.

Social media is a huge trend for this generation.

Instagram, Snapchat, and TikTok are, by far, the most frequently used platforms.

One-quarter of Gen Zers spend five hours or more per day on TikTok.

TikTok continues to soar in popularity among members of Generation Z (911% in 5 years).

However, as the members of Gen Z get older, experts predict Facebook may surge to be one of the top three social platforms.

It’s not just social media that has their attention.

Most Gen Zers also use their smartphones for video streaming, music, and podcasts.

The US Media Consumption Report from 2021 showed that 60% of Gen Zers stream music daily and 37% listen to podcasts weekly.

The average Gen Z individual spends 3.4 hours per day streaming videos.

Searches for “YouTube TV” have remained on a fairly steady increase over the past 5 years (177%).

It also reported that 44% of Gen Zers stream more than 3 hours of Netflix per day.

Only 20% of Gen Zers don’t have their own Netflix subscription.

Additionally, Gen Zers account for approximately 22% of Netflix’s website traffic, based on Semrush data. That equals roughly 61.5 million unique visitors each month.

Want to Spy on Your Competition ? Explore competitors’ website traffic stats, discover growth points, and expand your market share. Analyze

2. Nostalgic for the 2000s

Gen Zers have started bringing back trends from the early 2000s.

Marketing experts see this as a mix of old and new: Gen Z wants old products with a new focus on sustainability and social awareness.

Three “y2k” inspired hashtags have more than 3 million posts on Instagram.

Y2K is a popular trend on Instagram.

Gen Zers are especially nostalgic for fashion from the 2000s.

Low-rise jeans are also making a huge comeback courtesy of Gen Zers.

Pop culture and fashion from the 2000s are coming back, courtesy of Gen Z. Searches for “y2k fashion” are up more than 2000% since 2019.

Depop, a fashion resale app, is incredibly popular among Gen Zers – 90% of its users are younger than 26. “Vintage” items from the 2000s are exploding on the app.

Depop saw a surge in the months following the pandemic and searches for the platform have remained high.

Gen Zers are taking their tech products back in time, too.

The “flip phone” hashtag has over 600 million views on TikTok.

CASETiFY released iPhone cases that look like Blackberries, flip phones, and the original iPod.

Some are even ditching AirPods for wired headphones.

3. Distrust of government and other organizations

A Pew Research report showed that 7 in 10 Gen Zers believe the government should do more to solve problems.

A recent study said 66% of Gen Zers disagree that the government has done its best to protect the country.

The same study reported that nearly 60% of this generation agreed that it’d be difficult to trust the government post-pandemic.

One research paper suggests this distrust could continue well into the future.

The Political Scar of Epidemics, published in mid-2020, suggested that individuals who experience an epidemic when they are between the ages of 18 and 25 are likely to have negative attitudes toward the government and elections for a long time after the epidemic is over.

This means individuals in the older segment of Gen Z are less likely to trust elections, less likely to have confidence in the government, and less likely to approve of political leaders.

This trend notably had a large impact on the 2024 election.

In 2020, Millennials and Gen Zers made up 37% of the voting-eligible population. In 2024, that number jumped to 44% with all the growth coming from members of Gen Z.

The distrust of Gen Zers goes beyond politics.

They are unlikely to trust brands, too. Only 39% of Gen Z internet users trust a brand to keep their data safe.

Consumers in Gen Z trust brands with their data much less than any other generation.

A Deloitte survey found that 24% of Gen Zers don’t trust business leaders, 30% don’t trust traditional media, and 49% don’t trust religious leaders.

This trend may continue as Gen Zers grow into adults, but some experts suggest distrust is just part of being a teenager.

Peter Adams, who leads an organization teaching kids about media literacy, recently said, “Trust in institutions is down across the board, but teens experience even more cynicism about institutions just as a function of their time of life.”

4. Embracing diversity and social justice

Gen Z is the most ethnically diverse generation ever.

In the United States, nearly 40% of the Hispanic population belongs to Gen Z.

The Pew Research Center reports that 48% of Gen Zers are from racial or ethnic minorities.

This trend is amplified in certain locations.

For example, in the West, non-Hispanic whites make up only 40% of the Gen Z population. In the South, that number jumps to 46%.

Research shows that this generation is not only ethnically diverse, but they believe in the benefit of increasing diversity in society as a whole.

One report showed that 62% of Gen Zers believe that increasing diversity is good for society.

Members of Gen Z have also emphasized inclusion and social justice in recent years.

In one survey, Gen Z Republicans were much more likely than other Republicans to say that Blacks aren’t treated as fairly as whites in America today.

A poll run by Yubo, a social networking app, reported that 88% of Gen Zers feel that Blacks don’t receive equal treatment.

The Yubo poll also showed that 4 in 5 Gen Zers support the Black Lives Matter movement.

5. Emerging buying power

Gen Z’s global purchasing power is more than $400B.

A few key financial trends have emerged in this generation.

Buy now, pay later (BNPL) services are wildly popular with Gen Z.

Build a winning strategy Get a complete view of your competitors to anticipate trends and lead your market Analyze

Predictions state that more than 44% of Gen Z digital buyers (over the age of 14) used a BNPL service at least once.

Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) platforms are becoming more mainstream, especially among Gen Zers. Search volume is up considerably 6x in 5 years.

Individuals in Gen Z report that talking to family and friends is the most common way they find out about new brands, companies, and products. However, YouTube ads are a close second.

The trend of shopping entirely online is not as popular with Gen Zers as it is with their older counterparts, the Millennials. Gen Zers are much more likely to shop in stores.

Gen Zers differ from other generations because they want to stand out, not fit in. Brands are an afterthought for this generation.

Individuals in Gen Z are also looking for retailers that value inclusion as much as they do.

In a survey from McKinsey, 48% of Gen Zers say they value brands that don’t classify their products as male or female.

6. Influencing the workplace

The oldest members of Gen Z are just now entering the full-time workforce for the first time.

But by 2025, members of Gen Z will make up 27% of the global workforce.

Right now, they’re starting to lead the charge for several big changes.

The first is work-life balance.

Research shows that nearly 40% of Gen Zers put a large emphasis on work-life balance when choosing where to work.

Gen Zers are also likely to focus on empowering work culture and potential for growth within the company.

Work culture and growth potential are the top two reasons Gen Z employees will stay with a company, according to Finances Online.

Gen Z is also demanding more workplace benefits. They want flexible hours, fully covered health insurance, free meals, and sizeable salary increases – just to name a few.

They want their employer to encourage a healthy lifestyle. Gym memberships, flexible spending accounts related to healthy activities, and sabbaticals are all trending as benefits now.

Employee wellbeing has become a topic of focus in many organizations. Search volume is up nearly 317% over 5 years.

Generation Z is one subset of employees that does not put a large emphasis on working remotely.

In one survey, 48% of respondents said they’d prefer a hybrid work environment. Only 30% wanted to work fully remotely.

Searches for “hybrid work” surged in the latter half of 2020 and is up 342% over 5 years.

In one survey, nearly half of Gen Zers said they’d like to own their own business.

Lending Tree reports that 46% of Gen Zers over the age of 18 have a side hustle.

Nearly one-quarter of these individuals would not be able to pay their bills if they didn’t have that side hustle.

A few of the most popular spots in the gig economy for Gen Z workers are selling custom clothing, selling artistic goods on Etsy, and freelancing on Fiverr.

“Fiverr” searches have grown by 138% in 5 years. The site is a hit with Gen Zers who are hoping to earn income in the gig economy.

7. Rising mental health concerns

A survey from Deloitte found around half of Gen Zers feel stressed or anxious most or all of the time.

Reports from McKinsey say Gen Zers have the least positive outlook on life, and individuals in this generation are two to three times more likely than other generations to have thought about or attempted suicide in the past year.

The cause of these mental health concerns varies.

One potential reason is the generation’s excessive use of technology – a condition that some mental health experts have termed “iDisorder”.

Social media, in particular, has been connected to worsening mental health among young people.

The “digital wellbeing” of Gen Zers is a cause for concern. Search volume for this term has risen 6,300% over the last 5 years.

A survey conducted by the American Psychological Association, reported that adults in Generation Z were “the most likely generation to say that their mental health has worsened compared with before the pandemic”.

Gen Z adults were also much more likely to report feeling isolated and not getting adequate emotional support.

In recent years, up to 75% of Gen Zers have reported being stressed out by the threat of gun violence and mass shootings.

Even with these unfortunate statistics, members of Generation Z seem to be more open to getting help and discussing mental health troubles.

Compared to other generations, they are more likely to receive treatment from a mental health professional.

In some ways, the stigma associated with mental health issues has also diminished in the last few years.

Various celebrities, many of them Gen Zers or Millennials, have talked publicly about their own mental health struggles.

In an effort to boost their mental health, self-care and holistic health have become popular among Gen Zers. They’re making healthier food choices, using more skin products, and abstaining from alcohol more often.

Conclusion

Generation Z is unlike any generation that’s come before them. They’re connected, they’re diverse, and they’re ready to make their opinions known.

But, with so many Gen Zers being under 18 years old, the future of this generation may change drastically in the coming years.

With their ever-increasing purchasing power and propensity to impact social issues, Generation Z is one we’ll all want to watch closely.

Teenagers who show signs of being addicted to social media, mobile phones or video games are at greater risk of suicidal behaviour and emotional problems, according to research.

A study, which tracked more than 4,000 adolescents for four years, found that nearly one in three reported increasingly addictive use of social media or mobile phones. Those whose use followed an increasingly addictive trajectory had roughly double the risk of suicidal behaviour at the end of the study.

The findings do not prove screen use was the cause of mental health problems. But they highlight that compulsive use, which appears to be very common, as a significant risk factor that parents and healthcare services should be alert to.

Dr Yunyu Xiao, an assistant professor of population health sciences at Weill Cornell Medicine and first author of the study, said: “For parents and educators, the discussion around mobile phones and social media has focused on limiting or banning use, but our results indicate more complex factors are involved.

“Testing interventions that work against other types of addiction may be one way to approach this type of social media and mobile phone use.”

The findings come amid escalating mental health problems in young people and as governments are grappling with how to enforce safeguards around smartphones and social media. Against this backdrop, scientists have faced a near-impossible challenge to try to pin down evidence of how rapidly evolving and highly personalised screen use might be linked to young people’s mental health.

The latest study tracked almost 4,300 adolescents aged nine to 10 when they started the study. Rather than simply measuring screen time, the scientists assessed participants for “addictive use”, such as whether technology was interfering with activities like schoolwork and exercise and whether people experienced craving or feelings of distress when screens were withdrawn. Machine learning was used to cluster participants into groups based on their screen use trajectories.

For mobile phones, about half of the children reported high addictive use from the start of the study that remained high through early adolescence, and a quarter developed increasing addictive use as they aged.

For social media, 41% of children had high or increasing addictive use. For social media and mobile phones, the high and increasing addictive use trajectories were associated with a two to three times greater risk of suicidal behaviours and suicidal ideation compared with the low addictive use trajectory.

More than 40% of the youths had a high addictive use trajectory for video games. These adolescents were significantly more likely to report suicidal thoughts or behaviours, as well as symptoms of anxiety, depression, aggression or rule-breaking.

By contrast, the total amount of time spent on social media, mobile phones and video games was not associated with future suicide-related or mental health outcomes. What mattered most was whether their use showed signs of compulsion, distress or loss of control.

Xiao said: “There are many factors that would induce addictive feelings, such as the designs of the social media or video games, some kids may also experience bullying and more adverse childhood that they find using phones more comfortable, but later they cannot stop using it.”

The findings, published in the journal Jama, raise further questions over how parents should manage children’s screen use. “We do not know if just taking away access will help, unless it is taking away access 24/7, because we know from studies of addiction management that partial access can quickly reinforce the addiction,” Xiao said.

Prof Amy Orben, who leads the Digital Mental Health Group at the University of Cambridge, said the study could not prove that technology use caused mental health problems. An alternative explanation would be that poor self-control could be the root cause for problematic screen use and mental health outcomes.

“Yet the study importantly highlights that why and how young people use technologies, and how they feel technologies affect their lives, may matter more to their mental health than the time spent online,” she added.

“As those reporting such issues are not a small proportion of the population, supporting them should be taken seriously.”

New research shows that youth who become increasingly addicted to social media, mobile phones or video games are at greater risk of suicidal thoughts, suicide attempts and emotional or behavioral issues. The study, published June 18 in JAMA, was led by researchers at Weill Cornell Medicine, Columbia University and University of California, Berkeley.

Unlike previous studies that focused on total screen time at one point in a child’s life, this study looked at how young people’s patterns of compulsive or “addictive” use changed over time. These patterns included feeling unable to stop using a device, experiencing distress when not using it or using it to escape from problems. In contrast, simply spending more time on screens at 10 years old wasn’t associated with worse suicide-related and mental health outcomes.

Dr. Yunyu Xiao

“For parents and educators, the discussion around mobile phones and social media has focused on limiting or banning use, but our results indicate more complex factors are involved,” said first author Dr. Yunyu Xiao, assistant professor of population health sciences at Weill Cornell Medicine. “Clinical trials have shown that limiting cell phone use, for instance during school hours, was not effective in reducing the risk of suicidal behavior or improving other aspects of mental health.”

This study could signal a paradigm shift in how the impact of screen time on youth mental health is addressed. “Testing interventions that work against other types of addiction may be one way to approach this type of social media and mobile phone use,” Dr. Xiao said.

Dr. John Mann, the Paul Janssen Professor of Translational Neuroscience in Psychiatry and Radiology at Columbia University and the New York State Psychiatric Institute, is senior author on this study.

Quantity Versus Quality

Over four years, the researchers tracked nearly 4,300 youths aged 9 to 10 when they first started the study. Participants identified themselves as Asian, Black, Hispanic, white or multiracial. Using machine learning and data from participant interviews, the researchers characterized three addictive use trajectories for social media and mobile phone usage and two for addictive use with video games. When graphed, these trajectories depicted relative levels of addictive behaviors.

By age 14, almost one in three participants had a high addictive use trajectory for social media and one in four for mobile phones. More than 40 percent of the youths had a high addictive use trajectory for video games. These adolescents were significantly more likely to report suicidal thoughts or behaviors, as well as symptoms of anxiety, depression, aggression or rule-breaking.

Dr. Yuan Meng

The researchers also found that each type of digital activity showed unique patterns of association with suicide-related behaviors and mental health symptoms. For social media and mobile phones, the high and increasing addictive use trajectories were associated with a two to three times greater risk of suicidal behaviors and suicidal ideation compared with the low addictive use trajectory. The higher use trajectories were also associated with either internalizing symptoms such as anxiousness and depression, or externalizing symptoms, including aggressiveness or inattentiveness.

“Parents may want to pay more attention to how their kids are using their digital devices and consider having them evaluated for signs of addictive use, said co-first author Dr. Yuan Meng, postdoctoral associate in population health sciences at Weill Cornell. “If an addiction is identified, limiting use of mobile phones and social media for part of the day, may potentially reinforce addictive behaviors, so seeking professional advice is essential.”

Paradigm Shift

This study demonstrated that the total amount of time spent on social media, mobile phones and video games was not associated with future suicide-related or mental health outcomes. What mattered most was how youth were engaging with screens—especially whether their use showed signs of compulsion, distress or loss of control.

The findings suggest repeated assessment of social media and mobile phones in children entering adolescence for addictive use patterns could be valuable. “Children who initially display low or moderate trajectories are not typically considered at-risk, but follow-up can detect concerning trends such as development of more severe addictive use over time,” said Dr. Xiao, who is also assistant professor of population health sciences in psychiatry at Weill Cornell Medicine.

Though the study does not prove addictive screen use causes mental health problems—higher addiction use trajectories are linked to roughly double the risk of suicidal behavior in the near future of these teens. “This calls for further study and evaluation of approaches that have worked for other addictions in children and adolescents which may apply to this issue,” Dr. Mann said.

Next, Dr. Xiao and her colleagues plan to identify profiles of children who comprise different trajectories with their demographic and socioeconomic information. The researchers are also developing interventions to address addictive use behaviors at their onset to reduce the likelihood of suicidal behaviors.

Dr. Timothy T. Brown, associate director for research at the Berkeley Center for Health Technology at the University of California, Berkeley, and Dr. Katherine M. Keyes, professor of epidemiology at the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, also contributed to this study.