Flawed data led to findings of a connection between time spent on devices and mental health problems – new research

Photo caption: Social media has a lot to answer for, but in terms of time spent on them, the mental health of young people might not belong on the list. Photo credit: David Stewart HomeGets, via Flickr. CC BY. Article by Craig J.R. Sewall. The Conversation – June 23, 2021.

Even a casual follower of the news over the last few years is likely to have encountered stories about research showing that digital technologies like social media and smartphones are harming young people’s mental health. Rates of depression and suicide among young people have risen steadily since the mid-2000s, around the time that the first smartphones and social media platforms were being released. These technologies have become ubiquitous, and young people’s distress has continued to increase since then. […]

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