Increased Media Screen Time and Depression

There is an increase in depression and suicide rates among U.S. adolescents which has a link to increased media screen time. A study indicated that between the years of 2010 and 2015 there was an increase in depression and suicide. The study also indicated that this increase in suicide happened more among females. The ages of suicide and depression for adolescents ranged between 13 to 18 years old.

Research Findings:

Adolescents who chose to spend less time on social media and smartphones were less likely to report mental health issues. On the other hand, adolescents who spent more time on social media and electronic devices reported more mental health issues.

Adolescents who chose to spend less time on social media had more time to spend with family, friends, and play sports or exercise. The study concluded that adolescents who spent less time doing social interactions and, exercise, and play with friends or family reported more depression and suicide ideation.

Results:

This shows that there is a decline in happiness and life satisfaction, especially among young girls and women. This cultural norm is impacting adolescents in a negative way and enabling people to compare their lives to others. If adolescents chose not to use social media, school culture and society culture in general enable the shift towards social media use through learning from each other.

It is very important to spend as much time as we can doing activities we like such as going to the gym, spending more time with family and friends. This will enable us to have more interaction with people, rather than spending most of our time and living on social media platforms.

References

Twenge, J. M., Joiner, T. E., Rogers, M. L., & Martin, G. N. (2018). Increases in Depressive Symptoms, Suicide-Related Outcomes, and Suicide Rates Among U.S. Adolescents After 2010 and Links to Increased New Media Screen Time. Clinical Psychological Science, 6(1), 3–17. https://doi.org/10.1177/2167702617723376 (Links to an external site.)