Digital media use and mental health

Researchers from fields like psychology, sociology, anthropology, and medicine have studied the relationship between digital media use and mental health since the mid-1990s, following the rise of the World Wide Web and text messaging. Much research has focused on patterns of excessive use, often called "digital addictions" or "digital dependencies," which can vary across different cultures and societies. At the same time, some experts have explored the positive effects of moderate digital media use, including its potential to support mental health and offer innovative treatments. For example, participation in online support communities has been found to provide mental health benefits, although the overall impact of digital media remains complex.^[1]

The difference between beneficial and pathological use of digital media has not been established. There are no widely accepted diagnostic criteria associated with digital media overuse, although some experts consider overuse a manifestation of underlying psychiatric disorders. The prevention and treatment of pathological digital media use are not standardized, although guidelines for safer media use for children and families have been developed. The fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5, 2013) and the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11) currently do not recognize problematic internet use or problematic social media use as official diagnoses. However, the ICD-11 does include gaming disorder—often referred to as video game addiction—while the DSM-5 does not. As of 2023, there remains ongoing debate about if and when these behaviors should be formally diagnosed. Additionally, the use of the term "addiction" to describe these conditions has been increasingly questioned.

Digital media and screen time amongst modern social media apps such as Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat and Facebook have changed how children think, interact and develop in positive and negative ways, but researchers are unsure about the existence of hypothesized causal links between digital media use and mental health outcomes. Those links appear to depend on the individual and the platforms they use.