Jacqueline Nesi, PhD, a clinical psychologist at Rhode Island Hospital and assistant professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior at The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, has been awarded funding from the National Institute of Health (NIH) to investigate the impact of social media on the mental health of adolescents.
As rates of depression and anxiety among youth have surged in the past decade, with 97% of teenagers using at least one social media platform, understanding the relationship between social media use and mental health has become increasingly critical. Despite widespread concern regarding social media's role in the youth mental health crisis, comprehensive research on the mechanisms by which social media does or does not contribute to these issues is still lacking.
“We’re interested in understanding how teens’ experiences with social media do or do not contribute to symptoms of depression and anxiety,” said Jacqueline Nesi, PhD. “In particular, we want to identify which teens may be most sensitive to social media’s effects, and also, whether teens’ pre-existing beliefs about social media influence their use of these platforms and subsequent mental health symptoms.”
The study will recruit a diverse sample of 200 adolescents aged 13-16, encompassing a full range of depression and anxiety symptoms, and will follow them over a four-wave, longitudinal study. Assessments will be conducted at baseline and at 6-, 12-, and 18-month follow-ups. Participants will engage in an innovative online experimental eye-tracking task designed to simulate peer interactions within a social media environment. Additionally, real-time collaborative data collection and dimensional measures of internalizing symptoms will be utilized throughout the study.
A youth advisory board will be established to provide ongoing feedback, ensuring the research remains relevant and grounded in the experiences of young people.
The findings from Dr. Nesi’s research are expected to yield new insights into the mechanisms by which social media influences adolescent mental health. This work will identify novel, potentially modifiable targets for future clinical, educational, and public health interventions, ultimately supporting healthier social media use among youth.
This study is funded by The National Institute of Mental Health (Sponsor Award R01MH137444). It was funded for $4.09M and will run through May 2025.