Which social media platforms matter and for whom? Examining moderators of links between adolescents' social media use and depressive symptoms
Gentzler AL, Hughes JL, Johnston M, Alderson JE
Journal of adolescence · 15 citations
How it was studied
- Design
- Cohort study (classified by our AI screen)
- Studied in
- People
- Main outcome
- Health markers and function
Who paid for it
- Funding
- Independent funding
- University or hospital
- West Virginia University
- Government
- National Institutes of Health
- Government
- Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
- Government
- NICHD NIH HHS
- Grants
- Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (R15 HD078920); National Institutes of Health (1r15hd078920-01a1)
Based on 4 listed funder(s).
Publication
- Published
- 2023-09-12 · J Adolesc · vol. 95 · issue 8 · pp. 1725–1748
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Cited
- 34 citations · more than 99% of similar papers · 15.4× the field average
- Impact
- Top 10% most cited in its field
- References
- 97 works
- Access
- Open access (hybrid journal) · CC-BY-NC-ND
- Research areas
- Impact of Technology on Adolescents · Mental Health via Writing · Social Media in Health Education
- Keywords
- social media use, depressive symptoms, adolescents, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, YouTube, Snapchat, Facebook, self-esteem, extraversion, gender differences, COVID-19 pandemic, individual differences, mental health risk
- MeSH
- humans, depression, self concept, adolescent, female, male, social media
4 authors
From US
- Amy L. GentzlerWest Virginia University
- Jeffrey L. HughesWest Virginia University
- Matty JohnstonWest Virginia University
- Jacob AldersonWest Virginia University
Abstract
Introduction
Despite extensive research on social media and risks for mental health, not enough is known about individual differences in these risks.
Methods
The present study, with data collected from 2018 to 2020, investigated the association between social media use (total and for specific platforms) and depressive symptoms in a sample of 237 American adolescents (Mage = 15.10; SD = 0.49; 51.1% girls and 48.5% boys). We investigated several moderators: gender, self-esteem, personality, and negative reactions to social media. Covariates were gender, timing of the follow-up (pre vs. during the pandemic), and depressive symptoms a year earlier.
Results
Results indicated that greater total time spent on social media was associated with higher levels of depressive symptoms. This effect held for Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube (but not Snapchat, Facebook, or Twitter). Several moderated effects were found. Twitter was associated with more depressive symptoms for girls but not boys. More frequent Instagram use was linked to more depressive symptoms for less or average-level extraverted teens but not for more extraverted teens, suggesting extraversion may be protective. More frequent TikTok use was associated with more depressive symptoms, particularly for teens who said they have more or average-level negative reactions to social media a year earlier.
Conclusions
This study suggests that certain adolescents may be at increased risk for serious mental health challenges, like elevated depressive symptoms, when using TikTok, Instagram, or Twitter more frequently, underscoring the importance of examining individual differences and particular social media platforms.
Abstract via Europe PMC. Copyright remains with the authors or publisher (CC BY-NC-ND).
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