Smartphones can benefit children if they steer clear of social media

A study of over 1,500 children suggests that smartphones are beneficial for mental and social well-being unless they begin using social media.

Justin Martin The University of South Florida surveys state children ages 11 to 13. 25 years of national research To explore the link between digital media and happiness.

The researchers found that 78% of the 1,510 children surveyed owned smartphones, and 21% of these reported symptoms of depression and anxiety. Children with phones were also more likely to report spending time in person with friends.

“We thought ownership of a smartphone was related to negative outcomes or negative measures,” Martin says. “But it wasn’t.”

The researchers found that children with low-income parents are more likely to own smartphones than children with rich parents. The highest prevalence of 87% smartphone ownership was found in children living in households collected between $50,000 and $90,000, while only 67% of children in households who own smartphones over $150,000 have a smartphone.

Martin suggests that this may reflect the school policies that children attended, in response to a greater awareness of negative headlines about the supposed risks of social media affecting their mental health.

But such a ban — Florida was the first US state to introduce in 2023 — could be in a volatile scientific position, Martin says. “We were careful to emphasize associations rather than causality, but children with smartphones probably use them for social purposes and like many adults,” he says.

However, not all smartphone use is a benefit of dirt. The researchers also found that children who said they were often posted on social media were twice as likely to report sleep problems or symptoms of depression or anxiety compared to people who never use these platforms. That said, the study failed to determine whether increased use of social media has led to mental health and sleep problems, or whether the opposite is true, says Martin.

“We recommend that parents and adults consider protecting their children from the social platforms that their children post frequently, or try to avoid posting on social platforms,” ​​says Martin. “Of course, it’s hard to tell your kids. ‘You can use Instagram. You can use Tiktok, but don’t post it.” ”

Children surveyed are evenly divided on the merits of social media, with 34% agreeing that social media is more harmful than good, 33% disagreeing, and the rest are undecided about the issue.

“This is an attractive study that makes an important distinction, especially between smartphones and social media,” he says. Jess Maddox At the University of Alabama. “These two are synonyms for each other, but this study shows that they are not actually the same.”

“These are truly subtle findings and we hope that parents, educators and politicians will not be banned, but will encourage them to think more about their children’s education on smartphones and social media,” she says.

David Ellis At Bath University in the UK, this work confirms similar findings from previous studies, but understanding more work to understand what the data is directing us before deciding what to do about children’s smartphone use is that “the lack of analysis will strengthen conclusions that are more difficult to justify policy changes.”