AS MOST PARENTS ARE WELL AWARE, social media use has become nearly pervasive among America’s youth. In fact, according to Social Media and Youth Mental Health: The U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory (2023), “Up to 95% of youth ages 13-17 report using a social media platform, with more than a third saying they use social media ‘almost constantly.’” Furthermore, despite the fact that most social media platforms specify that users must be at least 13 years of age, nearly 40% of American children between the ages of 8 and 12 are already using social media, the advisory states.
However, it’s important to establish that the Surgeon General’s advisory is not a blanket condemnation of social media use among young people. The report acknowledges that social media use can also offer a host of benefits to children and adolescents, including, among others, promoting a sense of community and connection among individuals who share interests or identities, providing an important platform for creative self-expression, and helping young people develop social connections and form or maintain friendships.
These pros notwithstanding, one could argue that, when it comes to the mental and emotional well-being of children and adolescents, the potential cons of social media use are significant.
The advisory notes that these potential harms can be placed into one of two categories—1) those stemming from actual exposure to extreme, inappropriate, or harmful content, and 2) those stemming from excessive or problematic social media usage.
Social media content with the potential to cause harm can take many forms, such as images, videos, or written content that promotes, enables, or exposes young people to:
• Harassment, bullying, or abuse
• Pornography or other developmentally inappropriate sexual content
• Predatory or exploitative behavior
• Images or descriptions of violence
• Suicide or acts of self-harm
• Dangerous risk-taking challenges
• Body image dissatisfaction
• Disordered eating behaviors
• Unhealthy social comparison
• Racist or other hate-based communication directed at individuals or groups.
Excessive or problematic social media usage can mean different things as well, but it often takes the form of compulsive or uncontrollable use that interferes with healthy behaviors, such as getting an adequate amount of sleep, focusing on schoolwork, exercising, or participating in real-world activities with family and friends.
Why does social media use commonly reach compulsive and unhealthy levels? Again, we can turn to the Surgeon General’s advisory for the answer here. It states, “Social media platforms are often designed to maximize user engagement, which has the potential to encourage excessive use and behavioral dysregulation. Push notifications, autoplay, infinite scroll, quantifying and displaying popularity (i.e., ‘likes’), and algorithms that leverage user data to serve content recommendations are some examples of these features that maximize engagement…. Further, some researchers believe that social media exposure can overstimulate the reward center in the brain and, when the stimulation becomes excessive, can trigger pathways comparable to addiction.”
There is much that tech companies and policymakers can and should do to protect young people who use social media, but parents have an important role to play as well. Here are some simple steps parents can take to help mitigate the potential harms social media use presents to children:
Teach kids about responsible social media use early on
Discuss the potential benefits and risks associated with social media use as early as possible. Make sure they understand the importance of protecting their privacy and personal information— and that of others—whenever they’re interacting on social media. Assure them that they can come to you for help and guidance if they encounter harmful content or abusive behavior online, or if someone attempts to interact with them in a manner that makes them uncomfortable.
Establish firm boundaries
Set age- and developmentally appropriate limits on when, where, how long, and how often your child is allowed to use social media. For example, you might choose to establish a no-screentime period when your child is doing homework, during family mealtimes, one hour before bed and throughout the night (to ensure a good night’s rest), or at any other time of day that you want your child to focus exclusively on something or someone else.
Monitor their social media use
Parents may feel awkward about monitoring their kids’ social media use, worrying that doing so is a violation of their privacy. However, according to the website of the American Psychological Association (apa.org), “Psychological research shows it is critically important to focus on how teens use social media and the type of content they see.” The site further states, “…adult monitoring of social media postings and content viewed is advised, especially in early adolescence. Unsupervised social media use is more likely to expose children to potentially harmful content and features of social media. Scientific studies demonstrate it is also critical for parents to engage in ongoing discussions with adolescents about how to use social media in safe and helpful ways.”
Enlist other parents in your cause
Limits set on social media use will be much easier to maintain if your child’s friends and acquaintances are expected to follow a similar set of rules. Discussing the expectations you have for your child with other parents might inspire them to establish similar social-media-use boundaries and help create a unified front that benefits everyone involved.
Lead by example
Last but certainly not least, try to model the type of social media usage you’d like to see in your children. Kids are much more likely to imitate behaviors they see than to do what they’re told—and if their parents are constantly breaking their own rules when it comes to social media use, they can only conclude that the rules must not be that important. So, lead by setting a good example, not just by speaking the right words.
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