It's not all about the likes: Social media affordances with nighttime, problematic, and adverse use as predictors of adolescent sleep indicators

Mechanisms Linking Social Media Use and Sleep in Emerging Adults in the United States

Social media use is associated with poor sleep outcomes. We aimed to extend previous research by examining how measures of social media use would affect two sleep characteristics: sleep quality and insomnia symptoms. In addition, we tested a serial mediation model linking social media use to sleep through increases in negative social comparison and pre-sleep cognitive arousal. Participants were 830 emerging adults (ages 18-30) who were recruited for an online survey study in February 2024. The sample was 63.1% female, with an average age of 24. We examined three measures of social media use: duration (minutes of daily use), frequency (number of weekly visits to social media platforms), and emotional investment (attachment to and integration of social media into daily life). Consistent with our hypothesis, greater emotional investment in social media and more frequent social media use were associated with poorer sleep quality and greater insomnia severity. We also found evidence supporting our hypothesized serial mediation model: emotional investment in social media and more frequent social media use were associated with increased negative social comparison, which subsequently increased pre-sleep cognitive arousal, which then led to poorer sleep outcomes. Our findings suggest that negative social comparison and pre-sleep cognitive arousal are important mechanisms linking social media use to poor sleep outcomes. Future studies should aim to test this serial mediation model using longitudinal data and experimental methods.

A bidirectional model of sleep and technology use: A theoretical review of How much, for whom, and which mechanisms

The link between technology and sleep is more complex than originally thought. In this updated theoretical review, we propose a new model informed by the growing body of evidence in the area over the past 10 years. The main theoretical change is the addition of bi-directional links between the use of technology and sleep problems. We begin by reviewing the evidence to date for the originally proposed mechanisms of bright light, arousal, nighttime sleep disruptions, and sleep displacement. Then, in support of the new direction of effect (sleep problems preceding technology use), we propose two new mechanisms: technology before sleep might be used as a time filler and/or as an emotional regulation strategy to facilitate the sleep-onset process. Finally, we present potential moderators of the association between technology and sleep, in recognition of protective and vulnerability factors that may mitigate or exacerbate the effects of technology on sleep and vice versa. The goal of this theoretical review is to update the field, guide future public health messages, and to prompt new research into how much technology and sleep affect each other, for whom it may be problematic, and which mechanisms may explain their association.

Social Media Use and Sleep Quality Among Secondary School Students in Aseer Region: A Cross-Sectional Study

Background

Use of different social media platforms has increased radically over the past decade, emerging as an important part of adolescents and young people's everyday life. This might exert potential adverse effects on sleep quality and daytime performance of young adults.

Aim of Study

To assess the relation between use of social media platforms and sleep quality among public secondary school students.

Methods

A cross-sectional study was conducted on 961 students in Aseer region, Saudi Arabia. Students were asked to fill in a structured interview questionnaire covering personal data, pattern of social media use, sleep quality using The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) and their mental health status using the depression, anxiety and stress scale (DASS-21).

Results

Students' ages ranged from 15 to 20 years with a mean age of 16.7 ± 2.1 years old. A total of 570 (59.3%) students were females. Tiktok (80%), Snapchat (77.9%), Instagram (63.8%) and YouTube (58.8%) were the most reported platforms used. Regarding their sleep quality, 34.7% of students were poor sleepers. TikTok use (OR 1.33, 95% CI 1.01-1.77), hours spent on social media (OR 1.26, 95% CI 1.16-1.37) and having moderate to severe depressive symptoms (OR 1.69, 95% CI 1.19-2.40) were significant independent predictors of poor sleep among the studied sample.

Conclusion

The present study emphasized the association between prolonged use of social media and poor sleep quality among Saudi adolescents. Awareness and behavioral change strategies and activities concerning the drawbacks of poor sleep and proper use of social media are urgently called for to control mental and physical health consequences of poor sleep and social media addiction.

The Impact of Social Media Use on Sleep and Mental Health in Youth: a Scoping Review

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

Social media use (SMU) and other internet-based technologies are ubiquitous in today's interconnected society, with young people being among the commonest users. Previous literature tends to support that SMU is associated with poor sleep and mental health issues in youth, despite some conflicting findings. In this scoping review, we summarized relevant studies published within the past 3 years, highlighted the impacts of SMU on sleep and mental health in youth, while also examined the possible underlying mechanisms involved. Future direction and intervention on rational use of SMU was discussed.

RECENT FINDINGS

Both cross-sectional and longitudinal cohort studies demonstrated the negative impacts of SMU on sleep and mental health, with preliminary evidence indicating potential benefits especially during the COVID period at which social restriction was common. However, the limited longitudinal research has hindered the establishment of directionality and causality in the association among SMU, sleep, and mental health. Recent studies have made advances with a more comprehensive understanding of the impact of SMU on sleep and mental health in youth, which is of public health importance and will contribute to improving sleep and mental health outcomes while promoting rational and beneficial SMU. Future research should include the implementation of cohort studies with representative samples to investigate the directionality and causality of the complex relationships among SMU, sleep, and mental health; the use of validated questionnaires and objective measurements; and the design of randomized controlled interventional trials to reduce overall and problematic SMU that will ultimately enhance sleep and mental health outcomes in youth.

Why Haven't You Texted Me Back? Adolescents' Digital Entrapment, Friendship Conflict, and Perceived General Health

OBJECTIVE

Many adolescents feel pressure to be constantly available and responsive to others via their smartphones and social media. This phenomenon has been understudied using quantitative methods, and no prior study has examined adolescents' specific stress about meeting digital availability expectations within a best friendship, or entrapment. The present study offers an important preliminary examination of this unique digital stressor in a developmental context by examining prospective associations between digital entrapment, psychosocial adjustment, and health in adolescence.

METHOD

Students in a rural, lower-income school district in the southeastern US (n = 714; 53.8% female; 45.9% White, 22.7% Black, 24.0% Hispanic/Latino) completed self-report measures of digital entrapment, perceived general health, friendship conflict, and depressive symptoms at two timepoints, one year apart.

RESULTS

Digital entrapment, which 76.3% of the sample reported experiencing, was associated prospectively with higher levels of friendship conflict and worse perceived general health one year later among boys, but not girls. Findings suggest that digital entrapment is an extremely common experience for adolescents that may disproportionally affect boys. Entrapment was not prospectively associated with depressive symptoms.

CONCLUSIONS

Results offer insight into how boys may have different social media experiences significant to their development and health, while much work exploring gender differences in social media use thus far has elucidated negative effects for girls. Boys may perceive and respond to novel social norms of digital environments differently such that digital entrapment has the potential to be detrimental to their friendships and health.