More than 2 hours of daily social media use was associated with small increases in future risk of high depressive symptoms and poor well-being across adolescence, with the largest risks observed during early adolescence (12–13 years) for both male and female participants.
Key Findings
Results
Across adolescence, more than 2 hours versus less than 1 hour of daily social media use was associated with a small increased risk of high depressive symptoms at the subsequent annual wave.
Risk difference per 100: 6.3 (95% CI, 2.7–9.9)
Exposure was self-reported duration of daily social media use at each wave from waves 4 to 10 (ages 12–18 years)
Outcomes were assessed at the subsequent annual wave (waves 5 to 11, ages 13–19 years)
Study used a prospective longitudinal design with population-based cohort recruited in Melbourne, Australia
Results
More than 2 hours versus less than 1 hour of daily social media use was associated with a small increased risk of poor well-being at the subsequent annual wave.
Risk difference per 100: 4.9 (95% CI, 1.1–8.6)
Association was observed across adolescence (ages 12–18 years)
Well-being was self-reported and assessed one year after the exposure measurement
Results
Estimated risks for all mental health problems were greatest during early adolescence (ages 12–13 years).
Early adolescence showed the largest effects across all four mental health outcomes: depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms, poor well-being, and self-harm
This pattern was observed for both male and female participants
The study stratified analyses by sex and age periods (early, middle, and late adolescence)
Results
The largest effects of social media use on high depressive symptoms were observed in female participants during early adolescence.
Risk difference per 100 for >2 h vs. <1 h: 10.8 (95% CI, 2.7–18.9) in female participants in early adolescence
This was the largest single subgroup effect reported in the study
Analyses were stratified by both sex and age period
Results
No significant associations were found between social media use and anxiety symptoms or self-harm across the full adolescent age range.
Significant associations across adolescence were limited to high depressive symptoms and poor well-being
Anxiety symptoms and self-harm showed elevated estimated risks primarily in early adolescence subgroup analyses
The abstract notes 'Estimated risks for all mental health problems were greatest in early adolescence'
Methods
The study used a prospective longitudinal cohort of 1195 Australian adolescents followed annually from 2012 to 2022.
Participants were originally recruited in 2012 through Melbourne schools using stratified random sampling; 1239 Grade 3 students participated in wave 1
Final analytic sample was 1195 participants (552 [46%] male) after excluding those with missing data on mental health, social media use, and confounders
Data spanned wave 1 (2012) through wave 11 (2022), with social media exposure measured from waves 4–10 and outcomes from waves 5–11
Outcomes included self-reported depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms, well-being, and self-harm
What This Means
This research suggests that spending more than 2 hours per day on social media is linked to a modest but real increase in the likelihood of experiencing depression symptoms and poor well-being one year later among Australian teenagers. The study followed nearly 1,200 young people from ages 12 to 18 over a decade, making it one of the more rigorous longitudinal investigations of this topic. Importantly, because the study measured social media use before measuring mental health outcomes, it provides stronger evidence for a directional relationship than most previous cross-sectional studies, which only looked at both factors at the same point in time.
The study found that the risks were not equal across all teenage years — early adolescence (ages 12–13) appeared to be the most vulnerable period for all mental health outcomes examined. Girls in early adolescence showed the largest association, with more than 2 hours of daily social media use linked to roughly an 11 in 100 increased chance of high depressive symptoms compared to those using social media less than 1 hour per day. The overall effect sizes were described as 'small,' but given that millions of young people use social media heavily, even small individual risks can translate to meaningful public health impacts at a population level.
This research suggests that policies and educational efforts aimed at reducing heavy social media use may be most impactful if targeted at younger adolescents, particularly those in early secondary school. The findings support ongoing public debates about age-based restrictions or usage limits for social media platforms, though the authors note the effects are modest and other factors beyond social media also influence adolescent mental health.
Vijayakumar N, Dashti S, Canterford L, Ellul S, Parissi A, Goddings A, et al.. (2026). The Effects of Social Media on Adolescent Mental Health: Findings From a Population-Based Cohort Study in Australia.. The Medical journal of Australia. https://doi.org/10.5694/mja2.70220