Digital Media Use At Moderate Levels May Be Good For Adolescents: Study

Scientists found that low engagement with digital media, in today's connected world, is associated with poor mental health outcomes for adolescents who spend less time online compared to their peers.

The study found that high engagement in digital media strongly predicted worse mental health outcomes for both boys and girls, while low use of digital media was associated with worse mental health for boys and girls and was also predictive of peer problems for girls. | Representative photo

Source : Getty

There is a striking connection between the mental well-being of adolescents and the amount of time they spend online. High levels of digital media use are dangerous for the mental health of teenagers. However, using digital media at moderate levels may be good for adolescents, according to a new study led by researchers from the Department of Sociology in Trinity College Dublin.

The study titled "Digital engagement and its association with adverse psychiatric symptoms: A longitudinal cohort study utilizing latent class analysis" was recently published in the journal Computers in Human Behaviour. The paper contributes to international evidence on the perils of high levels of digital media use.

Low Engagement With Digital Media Associated With Poor Mental health Outcomes

The scientists also found that low engagement with digital media, in today's connected world, is associated with poor mental health outcomes for adolescents who spend less time online compared to their peers. The 'goldilocks' hypothesis states that digital media use at moderate levels is not intrinsically harmful and there is a point between low and high use that is 'just right' for young people. The finding that low engagement with digital media is associated with poor mental health outcomes for teenagers supports the 'goldilocks' hypothesis. 

How The Study Is Special

The new study marks the first time the 'goldilocks' theory has been examined in Irish teenagers, and is also the first study to attempt the integration of both time and online behaviours when examining associations between digital media and mental well-being. 

In a statement released by Trinity College Dublin, Professor Richard Layte, a co-author on the paper, said that evidence is mounting internationally that online engagement among adolescents may be damaging for mental well-being but the evidence is mixed, and that the new study provides fresh insights on the impact of digital engagement at the age of 17 or 18. The study results provide worrying evidence of real harms that require urgent action.

Why Moderate Use Of Digital Media Is Important

It is said that too much of everything is bad. Most people worldwide now use online resources as a means of social participation. Online engagement has become an inseparable part of our everyday lives, and non-use of digital media can have consequences. Layte explained that the study raises the possibility that moderate use of digital media is important in today's digital world, and that low levels of online engagement carry their own risks. He added that the questions for researchers are how much is too much and how much is too little. 

The scientists have looked up the association between adolescent use of online engagement and mental well-being in over 6,000 adolescents between the age of 13 to 18 years. 

The study participants were asked to report the time they spent online as well as the activities they engaged in, such as online messaging, sharing of college work, watching movies and listening to music. Questions investigating emotional, behavioural and peer issues helped assess the mental well-being of the participants. 

A young person's online behaviour was characterised based on the amount of time spent online, as well as the types of online behaviour the person engaged in. The study adjusted for prior psychiatric disorders and symptoms at the age of nine and 13. 

The researchers found that high engagement in digital media strongly predicted worse mental health outcomes for both boys and girls, while low use of digital media was associated with worse mental health for boys and girls and was also predictive of peer problems for girls. 

Dr Ross Brannigan, the lead author on the paper, said the study is novel in that it considers the importance of both time and online behaviours when examining associations between digital media and mental well-being. He added that the researchers found clear distinctions between groups spending similar time online, but differing in their behaviours online.

Ross explained that this indicates the importance of considering both time and behaviours online as well as the quality of these behaviours. For instance, passive and active behaviours were compared, and different types of behaviours such as social, educational, and entertainment. 

There is no real consistency in the association between digital media and online usage and its effect on mental health. Though the study results are not deterministic, the findings are an important step on the path to revealing why relationships between digital media use and mental health exist.