Accepted for/Published in: JMIR Mental Health
Date Submitted: May 19, 2022
Open Peer Review Period: May 19, 2022 - Jul 14, 2022
Date Accepted: Aug 4, 2022
(closed for review but you can still tweet)
Social media use and health-related quality of life among adolescents: A Cross-Sectional Study
ABSTRACT
Background:
Social media use is increasing among children. The impact of social media use on children’s health-related quality of life (HRQoL) remains unclear.
Objective:
This study assessed the associations between the number of social media platforms used, the time spent on social media and HRQoL among children aged 13 years.
Methods:
Data of 3,397 children from the Generation R Study, a population-based cohort study in the Netherlands, were analyzed. Children reported the number of social media platforms used and the time spent on social media during weekdays and weekends separately. Children’s HRQoL was self-reported with the EQ-5D-Y. Multiple logistic and linear regression models were applied.
Results:
In this study, 73% of children used 3 or more social media platforms, and 38% and 58% of children used social media at least 2 hours per day during weekdays and weekends. Children using more social media platforms had a higher odds of reporting having some or a lot of problems on ‘having pain or discomfort’ and ‘feeling worried, sad or unhappy’ dimensions (all p-values < 0.05) and reported lower self-rated health (β =-3.81; 95% CI: -5.54, -2.09). Both on weekdays and weekends, children spent more time on social media were more likely to report having some or a lot of problems on ‘doing usual activities’, ‘having pain or discomfort’, ‘feeling worried, sad or unhappy’, and report lower self-rated health (all p-values < 0.05).
Conclusions:
The findings indicate that using more social media platforms and spending more time on social media were significantly associated with lower HRQoL. We recommend future research to study the pathway between social media use and HRQoL among adolescents. Clinical Trial: NA
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