Study Finds No Link Between Screen Time and Teen Anxiety

Are social media platforms harming teen mental health, or is the panic overblown and potentially counterproductive?

Published JAN 15

Study Finds No Link Between Screen Time and Teen Anxiety

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Above: A teenage boy looking into a phone screen displaying various social media apps in Bath on Jan. 12. Image credit: Matt Cardy/Getty Images

The Spin

Pro-establishment narrative

The evidence linking social media to teen mental health problems remains inconclusive, with most studies showing only small correlations that don't prove causation. Teens themselves report social media has mostly positive impacts, providing crucial social connection and support that restrictive policies ignore. Sensationalist media coverage oversimplifies complex issues and risks creating self-fulfilling prophecies where constant warnings about harm actually cause the anxiety being blamed on platforms.

SpringerLink American Psychological Association

Establishment-critical narrative

Social media platforms are deliberately designed to be addictive, feeding teens harmful content through algorithms that prioritize advertising revenue over wellbeing. Research shows adolescents spending over three hours daily on social media face double the risk of depression and anxiety, with 64% regularly exposed to hate-based content. The responsibility has unfairly fallen on parents to fight a losing battle against platforms engineered to keep kids hooked.

Jay Van Bavel on X BBC Learning English

Metaculus Prediction

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