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Social networking and symptoms of depression and anxiety in early adolescence
Author(s) -
Mundy Lisa K.,
Canterford Louise,
MorenoBetancur Margarita,
Hoq Monsurul,
Sawyer Susan M.,
Allen Nicholas B.,
Patton George C.
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
depression and anxiety
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.634
H-Index - 129
eISSN - 1520-6394
pISSN - 1091-4269
DOI - 10.1002/da.23117
Subject(s) - odds , odds ratio , anxiety , mental health , depression (economics) , confidence interval , socioeconomic status , social support , psychology , psychiatry , demography , medicine , logistic regression , population , social psychology , environmental health , sociology , economics , macroeconomics
Background Use of social networking in later childhood and adolescence has risen quickly. The consequences of these changes for mental health are debated but require further empirical evaluation. Methods Using data from the Childhood to Adolescence Transition Study ( n = 1,156), duration of social networking use was measured annually at four time points from 11.9 to 14.8 years of age (≥1 h/day indicating high use). Cross‐sectional and prospective relationships between social networking use and depressive and anxiety symptoms were examined. Results In adjusted (age, socioeconomic status, prior mental health history) cross‐sectional analyses, females with high social networking use had greater odds of depressive (odds ratio [OR]: 2.15; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.58–2.91) and anxiety symptoms (OR: 1.99; 95% CI: 1.32–3.00) than those that used a few minutes at most, while males with high social networking use had 1.60 greater odds of reporting depressive symptoms (95% CI: 1.09–2.35). For females, an increased odds of depressive symptoms at age 14.8 was observed for high social networking use at one previous wave and at two or three previous waves, even after adjustment (OR: 1.76; 95% CI: 1.11–2.78; OR: 2.06, 95% CI: 1.27–3.37, respectively) compared to no wave of high use. Conclusions Our results suggest weak to moderate increased odds of depression and anxiety in girls and boys with high social networking use versus low/normal use. These findings indicate that prevention programs for early mental health problems might benefit from targeting social networking use in early adolescence.