The pressure to be on social media could adversely affect the wellbeing of teenagers, according to a recent study.
Researchers at the University of Glasgow found that the need to be constantly available and respond 24/7 on social media accounts can cause depression, anxiety and reduce sleep quality for teenagers, Live Science reported.
"Adolescence can be a period of increased vulnerability for the onset of depression and anxiety, and poor sleep quality may contribute to this. It is important that we understand how social media use relates to these. Evidence is increasingly supporting a link between social media use and wellbeing, particularly during adolescence, but the causes of this are unclear," researcher Dr. Heather Cleland Woods said in a statement.
For the study, researchers collected and analyzed data from 467 teenagers. The study participants were given questionnaires regarding their overall and night-time specific social media use. A further set of tests measured sleep quality, self-esteem, anxiety, depression and emotional investment in social media which relates to the pressure felt to be available 24/7 and the anxiety around, for example, not responding immediately to texts or posts
The analysis showed that overall and night-time specific social media use along with emotional investment were related to poorer sleep quality, lower self-esteem as well as higher anxiety and depression levels, Sky News reported.
"While overall social media use impacts on sleep quality, those who log on at night appear to be particularly affected. This may be mostly true of individuals who are highly emotionally invested. This means we have to think about how our kids use social media, in relation to time for switching off," Cleland Woods said.
The findings were presented at the British Psychological Society Developmental and Social Psychology Section annual conference.
