More time on social media means more anxiety, depression for teens—especially girls

by Bev Betkowski, University of Alberta

edited by Swati Mestri, reviewed by Andrew Zinin

Swati Mestri

Scientific Editor

Meet our editorial team
Behind our editorial process

Andrew Zinin

Chief Editor

Meet our editorial team
Behind our editorial process Editors' notes

This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies. Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:

fact-checked

trusted source

proofread

The GIST Add as preferred source

Spending more time on social media is making Canadian teenagers—especially girls—feel anxious, depressed and disconnected, according to a study co-led by University of Alberta researchers.

The work is published in the Journal of Adolescence.

Using a sample of thousands of teens, the research looked at how the daily amount of time spent on social media affects their mental health over one year and whether the impact differs among boys, girls and gender-diverse youth.

"It's important to provide evidence on the topic in the same group of adolescents over time, including transgender and gender-diverse youths, to better understand how these associations change or develop and if certain demographic groups are at greater risk," says study co-author Dr. Valerie Carson, a professor in the Faculty of Kinesiology, Sport, and Recreation.

Past research has shown that girls have experienced a steeper increase in depression than boys, and transgender and gender-diverse youths disproportionately experience poorer mental health, such as depression, as well as a higher risk of self-harm and suicide, she noted.

In the new study, researchers analyzed two large groups of youths ages 12 to 18: one with more than 58,000 teens in the 2021–22 school year and another with nearly 45,000 teens in 2022–23. Researchers also tracked nearly 27,000 of the same adolescents from one year to the next.

The sample groups were drawn from COMPASS, a large-scale research project that collects health and behavior data from schools across British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario, Prince Edward Island and Quebec.

The researchers looked at how much time the youths spent scrolling through social media each day and whether that amount increased or decreased over the year. Their levels of anxiety, depression and overall well-being were measured, along with how they managed their emotions and got along with others.

The results showed that just one extra hour of daily social media use was linked to a 15% higher chance of moderate to severe depression, along with a 12% to 13% higher likelihood of similar levels of anxiety.

"These percentages are meaningful considering how many youth currently use social media on a daily basis," notes Madelyn Curle, who led the study as part of her Ph.D. work.

Higher levels of social media use were also tied to lower levels of well-being, poorer emotional control and a noticeable drop in the quality of personal relationships.

Girls affected most

Although extra time on social media was linked to worse mental health among all teens, associations were strongest in girls, the study suggests.

Past research points to some contributing factors, including how social media is used, Curle says.

"There is evidence that girls may use social media more intensively than boys. Additionally, social media use may have a larger influence on girls' body image, which may lead to mental health concerns such as depression."

Over time, increases in social media use from one year to the next predicted poorer mental health in all adolescents, and no gender differences were observed.

"These findings, combined with previous research, have important policy implications for protecting youth," says Carson.

Future studies need to look at which apps teens are using and whether they are using them actively or passively, she adds, but the study's results appear to support the case for newly introduced Canadian legislation—the "Safe Social Media Act"—which proposes restricting use by youths under 16.

"Our findings suggest that decreasing social media use over time may support better mental health outcomes among adolescents, so the introduction of the act may be one way to reduce that usage," she adds.

Future policy also needs to include input from youths, Curle suggests.

"There may be some benefits to social media, including connection, identity development and social support for LGBTQIA+ teens, so they need to be engaged in discussions to ensure that while policies reduce potential harms of social media, they are also equitable."

More information

Madelyn Curle et al, The Cross‐Sectional and Longitudinal Associations Between Social Media and Mental Health Among a Large Sample of Adolescents, Inclusive of Transgender/Gender‐Diverse Adolescents, Journal of Adolescence (2026). DOI: 10.1002/jad.70151

Key medical concepts

Overall Well-Being QuestionEmotional Regulation

Clinical categories

PsychiatryPsychology & Mental healthPediatricsChildren's health Provided by University of Alberta Who's behind this story?

Swati Mestri

Swati Mestri holds a bachelor's degree in Electronics Engineering and has worked as a content editor since 2019. She has experience editing research documents across technology, health care, and materials science, and has a particular interest in technology and space. Full profile →

Andrew Zinin

Master's in physics with research experience. Long-time science news enthusiast. Plays key role in Science X's editorial success. Full profile →

Citation: More time on social media means more anxiety, depression for teens—especially girls (2026, September 15) retrieved 15 September 2026 from https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-social-media-anxiety-depression-teens.html This document is subject to copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study or research, no part may be reproduced without the written permission. The content is provided for information purposes only.