Social Media Increases Depression Risk In Pre-Teens

Social media does indeed appear to be making kids more prone to depression, a new study says.

Preteens are more likely to develop symptoms of depression as their use of social media increases, researchers reported May 21 in JAMA Network Open.

Depression symptoms increased 35% as kids’ average social media use rose from seven minutes to 73 minutes daily over a three-year period, researchers found.

However, the reverse wasn’t true: Depressed kids didn’t necessarily flock to social media, results show.

“There has been ongoing debate about whether social media contributes to depression or simply reflects underlying depressive symptoms,” said lead researcher Dr. Jason Nagata, an associate professor of pediatrics at the University of California – San Francisco.

“These findings provide evidence that social media may be contributing to the development of depressive symptoms,” Nagata said in a news release.

For the study, researchers analyzed data on nearly 12,000 kids participating in the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development Study, a federally funded research project that is the largest long-term study of brain development and child health in the United States.

Researchers checked the kids’ depressive symptoms and social media use at ages 9 and 10, and then three years later at 12 to 13.

The kids’ social media use increased steadily as they aged, from an average 7 minutes daily at the start to 73 minutes a day three years later, results show.

This increase in social media use was linked to an increase in symptoms of depression, looking at specific changes within each individual child, researchers found.

The research team said it’s not clear why social media would increase depression, but prior research points to cyberbullying and disrupted sleep as potential explanations, researchers wrote.

Younger generations find themselves facing a Catch-22, researchers said – social media is a primary way to connect and communicate with friends and family, but it’s also associated with depression and risky behavior.

The American Academy of Pediatrics suggests referring to its Family Media Plan to help promote healthier digital habits for both kids and parents.

“As a father of two young kids, I know that simply telling children to ‘get off your phone’ doesn’t really work,” Nagata said. “Parents can lead by example with open, nonjudgmental conversations about screen use. Setting screen-free times for the whole family, such as during meals or before bed, can help build healthier digital habits for everyone, including adults.”

More information

The American Academy of Pediatrics has more about its Family Media Plan.

SOURCE: University of California-San Francisco, news release, May 21, 2025

Source: HealthDay