It probably seems like something of a, uh, no-brainer, but many of our common-sense fears about kids and their overconsumption of social media seem to be popping up in negative ways in recent studies.
Research has shown, for instance, that 78% of 13- to 17-year-olds report checking their mobile devices at least hourly; 35% of teens report using at least one of the top five social media platforms almost constantly. Refining those facts, a study from researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill reported that adolescent’s frequent use of social media seems to be reshaping how their brains develop.
Over a three-year period, the students in the study—who were all 12 or 13 years old when it began—underwent annual MRI imaging of their brains. The research found that students who reported that they checked their social media more often, in some cases more than 20 times a day, showed greater neural sensitivity in certain parts of their brain.
What’s that mean? It means that their brains became much more sensitive to those good-feeling social media rewards and then reinforced their desire to dive into social media even more. And those measurable neural changes might also result in behavioral changes, such as increased anxiety or addictive behaviors.
“For youth who habitually check their social media, the brain is changing in a way that is becoming more and more sensitive to social feedback over time,” said study author Dr. Eva Telzer, assistant professor of psychology and neuroscience. “And this is setting the stage for how the brain continues to develop into adulthood.”
Coauthor Mitch Prinstein, who also serves as the chief science officer for the American Psychological Association, added, “Most adolescents begin using technology and social media at one of the most important periods for brain development during our lifetime. Our research demonstrates that checking behaviors on social media could have long-standing and important consequences for adolescents’ neural development, which is critical for parents and policy-makers to consider when understanding the benefits and potential harms associated with teen technology use.”
Those statements may sound like the experts are covering their bases and saying: “Uh, we don’t know for sure what’s going on.” And that may be true. But they’re sure that something is going on.
So, what should parents be doing when they’re not just “considering”?
A 2021 CNN article by Dr. Neha Chaudhary held some pretty solid suggestions. Chaudbury offered four steps to pulling back a bit from social media and evaluating if young users end up “feeling calm, refreshed, and in a better headspace” or not.
If nothing else, two sure-fire suggestions might be in order. First of all, young people (and all the rest of us, for that matter) could stand to cut back on the time spent on social media—limiting exposure to, say, 35 to 45 minutes a day and at specific times of the day (well before bedtime). Second, adolescents need to find time to put the phone or tablet down altogether and relax their minds, maybe take a nice walk or pick up a good book.
Whether we like it or not, we can confidently state that kids’ constant exposure to screens and social media is having a tangible impact on them. Wouldn’t it be wise to be safe and proactive while we wait for the next study to tell us more?
4 Responses
-I am personally not fond of social media because of what it does to your mindset. People can be truly nasty online.
-That’s perfectly sensible. Don’t let anybody pressure you to join the herd.
Bob, you intentionally misrepresented a quote from the study. This an extremely deceitful act. It also seems that you didn’t read the study. You didn’t fact check your article, because there is no link to the three studies referenced in the article. You just assumed it was accurate
The full quote:
“While this increased sensitivity to social feedback may promote future compulsive social media use, it could also reflect a possible adaptive behavior that will allow teens to navigate an increasingly digital world,” says Maria Maza, a doctoral student in psychology and one of the study’s two lead authors.
By misrepresenting this quote you chose to make social media a villain, when the quote says it might be helpful for kids. Because the researchers don’t know if these kids go to social media as a coping skill or if social media is the cause of the problem.
Your error might cause harm to children by removing a coping skill and you didn’t suggest counseling for kids with these issues.
Your article needs to be corrected, fact checked, and reposted to all of the social media accounts were it was published.
I think part of this is because of the psychology of the infinite scroll https://freedom.to/blog/infinite-scroll/ , never mind the benefits and drawbacks of online anonymity.