The Center is dedicated to promoting the evidence base and best practices for healthy social media use by synthesizing and sharing the current research surrounding social media and mental health.
This page is for researchers and others interested in diving deeper into current research. We will highlight government reports, new research studies, publications and published commentaries from the Center’s Co-Medical Directors, and an annual review of relevant gaps in the literature.
What's New
First Annual Review of Gaps in the Literature
From May 2023 to April 2024, Center researchers conducted literature reviews and environmental scans of existing resources to inform our Q&A Portal answers. From this review, they identified current gaps in the literature.
Center of Excellence on Social Media & Youth Mental Health
|December 19, 2024
Kids Online Health and Safety Task Force (KOHS) Report
The Kids Online Health and Safety Task Force (KOHS) report provides best practices for parents and caregivers on safer social media and online platform use for youth and recommended practices for industry.
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)
|July 19, 2024
Pediatrics Perspectives: The Family Media Plan
This article, written by creators of the AAP Family Media Plan, outlines the link between the Family Media Plan and AAP policies, collaborative design approach, and strong evidence base that informed the development of the Family Media Plan.
Pediatrics
|November 26, 2024
The Good and Bad of Social Media: What Research Tells Us
The connection between social media and mental health is complicated and personal. Everyone responds to social media differently. This infographic provides a few ways to think about how social media impacts kids and teens.
AAP Research Reports
NTIA’s Request for Comment on Initiatives To Protect Youth Mental Health Safety and Privacy Online
In November 2023, AAP responded to the National Telecommunications and Information Agency’s call for comment on Initiatives to Protect Youth Mental Health Safety and Privacy Online.
American Academy of Pediatrics
|November 16, 2023
Putting Forward a New Narrative for Adolescent Media
Co-Medical Directors, Drs Megan Moreno and Jenny Radesky discuss what we currently know about social media and youth mental health and the need to shift the popular narrative about media use that dominates the media.
Center of Excellence on Social Media & Youth Mental Health
|August 1, 2023
Community-Informed Solutions for Social Media and Youth Mental Health
In Summer 2024, Center researchers, with the Hassenfeld Child Health Innovation Institute and the National Parents Union Center for Parent Voice, conducted 5 focus groups with 48 caregivers from diverse racial/ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds to understand how they see the problem and potential solutions around social media and mental health. This report reflects those focus groups and key takeaways from parents/caregivers.
Center of Excellence on Social Media & Youth Mental Health
|August 1, 2024
Q&A Portal Research Process
Watch this short clip detailing the research process for all Q&A Portal submissions and check out some of our featured Portal questions.
Research On The Effects Of Social Media Use By Geographic Region
Question: Is there any research surrounding the effects of social media on youth based off of geographic regions?
Answer: Great question! Unfortunately, there is limited research on geographic differences and social media use among youth in the U.S. and even less that looked at the actual effects of this usage. Read the rest of this answer here.
Social Media & Youth Mental Health Q&A Portal
|October 18, 2023
School Phone Policies
Question: We are looking for any research on the impact of cell phone use policies, or lack of policies, in middle and high schools. We have heard that a policy of no phones during instruction time improves learning.
Answer: Overall, most of the research on cell phones in schools examines the impact of phone use on student behavior, rather than evaluation of whether cell phone policies are successful at improving learning. Read the rest of this answer here.
Social Media & Youth Mental Health Q&A Portal
|April 12, 2024
Related Research
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine Report: Social Media and Adolescent Health
A December 2023 report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine offers recommendations for social media companies, Congress, the U.S. Department of Education, and others to minimize the harm of social media use on adolescents’ health while maximizing its benefits.
Read
New Research on Digital Media and Youth
Highlighting emerging research that shows what parents and teens think about media and how the use of media continues to change.
The Life in Media Survey: A baseline study of digital media use and well-being among 11- to 13-year-olds
In 2025, the University of South Florida released the first output of their Life in Media Survey. This will serve as the baseline in a longitudinal study of the same 11–13-year-olds over 25 years. The survey looks at smartphone ownership and use, social media and gaming, news consumption, and other topics related to digital media and wellness. Initial results from the survey found that kids with smartphones reported better mental health than those without a smartphone, kids with smartphones were overall more likely to spend time with friends in person, and kids who slept in the same room as their phones reported significantly less sleep than those who removed the device. The full report is linked above.
Common Sense Census: Media Use by Kids Zero to Eight
In February 2025, Common Sense Media released the Common Sense Census: Media Use by Kids Zero to Eight. The census is based on an online survey conducted in 2024 involving over 1,500 parents of children ages 0 to 8. This census is the fifth iteration of this research and compares 2024 data to previous collections dating back to 2011. Some interesting findings include: a 65% increase in gaming time for young children since 2020. The census also found that nearly 1 in 5 children use mobile devices to help with emotional regulation, mealtimes, and falling asleep. Also, 51% of children aged 8 and younger have their own mobile device - either a tablet or a cellphone. The full report is linked above.
Pew Research Center: Teens, Social Media and Mental Health
In April 2025, Pew released a new report on Teens, Social Media and Mental Health following a survey of 1,391 U.S. teens and parents. Some key findings from the report include: nearly half of teens say social media has a negative effect on people their age. However, only 14% of teens believe social media has personally impacted them negatively. Also, 45% of teens say they spend too much time on social media, an increase from 2022 and a majority of teens see social media as a positive space for friendships and creativity. The full report is linked above.
Funding for the Center of Excellence was made possible by Grant No. SM087180 from SAMHSA of the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The contents are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement by, SAMHSA/HHS or the US Government.
Last Updated
12/19/2024
Source
American Academy of Pediatrics