A major new study from the University of Manchester has delivered a significant challenge to prevailing concerns, finding no evidence that time spent on social media or gaming causes mental health problems in teenagers.
Tracking 25,000 Teenagers Over Three Years
The research, published in the Journal of Public Health, followed a cohort of 25,000 young people aged 11 to 14 across three consecutive school years. The team meticulously tracked the participants' self-reported social media habits, gaming frequency, and emotional difficulties to determine if technology use could predict later mental health issues.
Participants detailed how much time they typically spent on platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and Snapchat, as well as gaming, on a normal school day. They also answered questions about their feelings, mood, and overall mental wellbeing.
Zero Link Found Between Use and Symptoms
The findings were clear. The study found no evidence for either boys or girls that heavier social media use or more frequent gaming led to an increase in symptoms of anxiety or depression the following year.
Specifically, increases in social media use from Year 8 to Year 9, and again from Year 9 to Year 10, had zero detrimental impact on mental health in the subsequent year. The same result was found for increased time spent gaming.
"We know families are worried, but our results do not support the idea that simply spending time on social media or gaming leads to mental health problems – the story is far more complex than that," stated lead author Dr Qiqi Cheng.
Active Chatting and Passive Scrolling Under the Microscope
The research went further, examining whether the type of social media activity mattered. It looked at time spent on various behaviours:
- Actively chatting with others online.
- Posting stories, pictures, and videos.
- Passively browsing feeds or scrolling through content.
Again, the scientists found that neither active communication nor passive consumption appeared to drive mental health difficulties. However, the authors were keen to stress that this does not mean online experiences are universally harmless.
Co-author Professor Neil Humphrey explained: "Our findings tell us that young people’s choices around social media and gaming may be shaped by how they’re feeling, but not necessarily the other way around."
Hurtful messages, online pressures, and exposure to extreme content can still have serious detrimental effects. The study suggests that focusing purely on restricting screen time is an unhelpful oversimplification.
"Rather than blaming technology itself, we need to pay attention to what young people are doing online, who they’re connecting with and how supported they feel in their daily lives," Professor Humphrey concluded.
The research emerges at a pertinent time, as UK ministers consider whether to follow Australia's lead in proposing a ban on social media use for children under the age of 16.
