Social media continues to make an impact on our world each day. It’s hard to go through our day-to-day lives without seeing some sort of social media. On top of this, many individuals worry that social media use is isolating and may be linked to youth mental health issues. Yet, evidence continues to be weak regarding the correlation between social media use and mental health problems among youth. 

The American Psychological Association (APA) initially testified that social media is harmful to youth. Naturally, many parents were frightened by these statements. However, the statements from the APA conflicted with a lot of scientific evidence that has been unable to prove a definite link between social media use and poor mental health outcomes. 

Many individuals, especially teen girls in the United States, are facing a mental health crisis. It’s easy to assume that these mental health crises are because of an increase in social media; however, this is not the case. Oftentimes, teens isolate for reasons besides social media, such as being bullied or exposed to loved ones’ isolation. Social media overuse is often a symptom of these factors. 

It’s important to emphasize that social media does not directly impact adolescents’ mental health. Many other factors can be involved, and blaming technology can avoid the origin of the issue. 

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Emma Dineen

UConn Kids, Research Assistant

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