Scientists find that the impact of social media on wellbeing varies by gender during adolescence and is linked to reduced life satisfaction for some.
Girls and boys may be vulnerable to the negative effects of social media at different ages during adolescence, a recent study has found. While girls experience a negative link between social media and life satisfaction when they are between 11 and 13 years old, this happens for boys when they are 14 to 15 years old. And while increased social media use predicts lower life satisfaction again at age 19, at other times in life the link was not statistically important.
A team of researchers from the University of Cambridge, University of Oxford and the Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour analysed two sets of UK data for 84,000 people aged between 10 and 80 years old and captured information about their mental health and wellbeing and their self-reported use of social media, such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and WhatsApp. One of the data sets tracked young people aged 10-21 years over a seven-year period.
The team looked for a connection between estimated use of social media and reported life satisfaction and found periods during adolescence where social media use was associated with a reduction in life satisfaction 12 months later. Conversely, the research also found that teenagers with lower than average life satisfaction used more social media one year later.
While among girls, social media use between the ages of 11 and 13 was associated with lower life satisfaction one year later, this occurred in boys when they were between 14 and 15 years old. This suggested that sensitivity to social media use might be linked to developmental changes during adolescence, such as changes in brain structure and puberty, which typically occurs later in boys than in girls.
The researchers suggested that the link between social media use at the age of 19 and decreased life satisfaction a year later might be due to social changes, such as leaving home or starting work, which may make people particularly vulnerable at this age – but they highlight that more research is needed.
“The link between social media use and mental wellbeing is clearly very complex,” said Dr Amy Orben, lead author of the study at the University of Cambridge. “Changes within our bodies, such as brain development, and in our social circumstances appear to make us vulnerable at particular times in our lives... We can now focus on the periods of our adolescence where we know we might be most at risk and use this as a springboard to explore some really interesting questions.”
The researchers are keen to point out that the study does not prove that social media harms wellbeing per se, but rather highlights “windows of vulnerability” which open at different times for boys and girls. Their study illustrates that social media use can negatively impact wellbeing, but also that lower life satisfaction can drive increased social media use with positive effects for some.
“Our statistical modelling examines averages,” said Professor Rogier Kievit, professor of developmental neuroscience at the Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour. “This means that not every young person is going to experience a negative impact on their wellbeing from social media use. For some it will often have a positive impact.
“Some might use social media to connect with friends, or cope with a certain problem, or because they don’t have anyone to talk to about a particular problem or how they feel – for these individuals, social media can provide valuable support.”
Is it time for a social media break?
Tips from Mind, the mental health charity
You may need a break if...
- You're having fewer face to face conversations with friends and family
- It's stopping you getting things done in your offline life
- You're feeling disconnected from those closest to you
- You're finding it difficult to think about and enjoy other things
- You're finding social media overwhelming
If you are looking for support with your mental health, you can find sources of local help on this website. For more information about looking after your online mental health, see the guide from Mind below.
