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When examining the reviews, it becomes evident that the research field is dominated by cross-sectional work that is generally of a low quality standard. While research has highlighted the importance of differentiating between different types of digital technology use many studies do not consider such necessary nuances. These limitations aside, the association between digital technology use, or social media use in particular, and psychological well-being is—on average—negative but very small. Furthermore, the direction of the link between digital technology use and well-being is still unclear: effects have been found to exist in both directions and there has been little work done to rule out potential confounders.

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00127-019-01825-4?ArticleAuthorOnlineFirst_20200111%3Futm_source=modulosPL

Social media bans and severe restrictions are a rigid, ineffective response to evolving issues that warrant continuous evaluation. Social media bans inhibit adolescent psychosocial needs by keeping adolescents from a source of meaningful connection without offering a valuable alternative. Strict social media restrictions and bans for adolescents have resulted in several negative consequences, such as instilling feelings of isolation, fostering rebellion against authority, and contributing to underdeveloped digital literacy skills [10].

Additionally, legislators have been attempting to impose time restrictions on social media use for minors [11,12] but have faced challenges in passing such regulations due to constitutional concerns. Even if implemented, these time restrictions do not address the quality of adolescents’ social media interactions and other contextual factors, which are critical for evaluating their impact on mental health.

https://mental.jmir.org/2024/1/e64626

While there are considerable concerns regarding the negative impacts of social media on adolescents, it also serves as a vital resource for adolescents and young adults. Much of the current research conducted on social media use has relied on focus groups and qualitative interviews, which can be vulnerable to reporting bias. Observational studies and objective tracking of social media may be needed to better understand social media use. Research has shown that social media engagement varies by race, gender, and other social factors, and future studies should explore how these demographic differences impact the positive outcomes associated with social media. Overall, social media can be an important tool for adolescents to find social connection, seek social support, and gain access to health information. Physicians can adopt a nuanced approach to addressing adolescent social media use.

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12356748/

Unfortunately, given the cross-sectional nature of most studies, it remains unclear whether social media use affects identity development in adolescence, whether the adolescent identity development process influences social media use, or whether these associations are perhaps bidirectional. Consequently, there is a need for well-designed longitudinal studies to capture the temporal direction of this relationship. Lastly, measuring only the time spent on social media limits the understanding of the relationship between social media engagement and identity development. Future research should focus on adolescents’ activities, interactions, and the content they engage with on social media to provide a more complete picture of this relationship.

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12084248/

Social media and technological advancements’ impact on adolescent mental health is complex. It can be both a risk factor and a valuable support system.

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12165459/

This review has highlighted how social media use can contribute to poor mental health – through validation-seeking practices, fear of judgement, body comparison, addiction and cyberbullying. It also demonstrates social media’s positive impact on adolescent wellbeing - through connection, support and discussion forums for those with similar diagnoses. Future research should consider adolescent views on improvements to social media, studying younger participants, and the impact of COVID-19 on social media use and its associated mental health implications.

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/13591045221092884