Problematic Social Media Use and Relationship to Mental Health Characteristics in Youth from the Texas Youth Depression and Suicide Research Network (TX-YDSRN)
As youth mental health has steadily degraded across the country, social media use has risen, even becoming problematic in some users. We sought to determine how problematic social media use related to mental health in youth with depression and/or suicidal ideation. Findings indicated that over forty percent of youth endorsed problematic social media use, defined as feeling disconnected/disappointed/upset when not using. Problematic users not only reported poorer wellness factors, but they also tended to report more depression, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts. While problematic users also had higher screen time, problematic use was a better predictor of mental health impairments. Our research highlights the potential negative impact of heavy social media use in at-risk youth, especially when it becomes a problematic habit.Kennard, B. D., Hughes, J. L., Minhajuddin, A., Jones, S. M., Jha, M. K., Slater, H., Mayes, T. L., Storch, E. A., LaGrone, J. M., Martin, S. L., Hamilton, J. L., Wildman, R., Pitts, S., Blader, J. C., Upshaw, B. M., Garcia, E. K., Wakefield, S. M., & Trivedi, M. H. (2025). Problematic social media use and relationship to mental health characteristics in youth from the Texas Youth Depression and Suicide Research Network (TX-YDSRN). Journal of Affective Disorders, 374, 128-140. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2025.01.046
- Depression
- Suicidality
- Anxiety