Is social media bad for teen mental health? It's complicated

Embargoed until: Publicly released: 2026-01-13 03:00

Australia; SA

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Avoiding social media in primary school is linked to improved mental health, but the impacts of social media on high schoolers are more complicated, according to Australian research which found both too much and too little time on social media could have negative impacts. The research followed the wellbeing and self-reported after school social media usage of over 100,000 Aussie kids in school years 4-12 over three years, categorising children as non-users, moderate or high users of social media. For girls, the researchers say non-users had the highest wellbeing in years 4-6 but by middle school, moderate users had the best wellbeing. High use was consistently linked to poor mental health in girls. In boys, the researchers say moderate and no use had similar outcomes up to year 6, but from year 7 onwards, non-use was increasingly linked to poor mental health, surpassing the risk of high use by years 10-12. The researchers say this shows both heavy social use and abstinence may have risks for young people who are vulnerable to not only social comparison, but also social isolation.