The Big Issue – August 19, 2019

12 | BIGISSUE.COM 19-25 AUGUST 2019

fact/fiction. Old news, truthfully retold

FACTS. CHECKED

Thestudywarnedthatmentalhealthdamagefrom
socialmediawasdowntotheissuessurroundingsocial
mediaratherthandirectlyusingittoextremelevels.
ProfessorVinerandhisco-authorDrDashaNicholls,
fromImperialCollegeLondon,suggestedthatdirect
effects, such as on braindevelopment, areunlikely and
sointerventionsto simplyreducesocialmedia usemight
bemisplaced.
They foundthat very frequent socialmedia usewas
associated with greater psychologicaldistress.
That distress increased for girls themorethey used
socialmedia – in 2 0 14, 28 per cent of girls who very
frequently used socialmedia reported psychological
distress on thegeneral health questionnaire, compared
with 2 0 per cent of thoseusingit weekly or less.
This increasewas not as pronounced in questionnaires
answered by boys.But thekey pointof thestudywas not
that spending hours on social media was the reason for

thedistress, it was theassociated issues of cyber-bullying,

loss of sleep or reduced physicalactivitythat comewith

being online.

This is a subtledistinctionthat mightbelost by

glancingattheheadlinesinTheSunandtheFT.

AsProfessorVinerputsit:“Ourresultssuggestthat

socialmedia itself doesn’t causeharm,but that frequent

usemay disruptactivities that havea positiveimpact

on mental health such as sleeping andexercising,while

increasingexposureof youngpeopleto harmfulcontent,

particularlythenegativeexperienceof cyber-bullying.”

Thesefindingscontradictsomepreviouslynegative

findingsaboutteenagers’ useof socialmedia.

But theimpactof Twitter, Facebook, Snapchatand

co is still being analysed and research in this area will

continueto advanceover time.

Whilethathappens,encouragingmoderation,

particularly at night, is a sensible course of action.

Is social media damaging

youngsters’ mental health?

HOWITWASTOLD

We’reallstilltryingtogetahandleonsocial

media.Thenewtechnologyhasmadetheworlda

smallerplaceinthelast 15 yearsbyconnectingusto

peopleallovertheworldandgivingdirectaccessto

celebritiesandathletes.

Buttheimpacton our mentalhealth,how much

timeweshouldreally spendscrollingand whether

Twitterand Facebooketalhavebeenagoodthingfor

usisstillupfor debate.

Academicshavebeenhard atworktryingto

answerthesequestions.Athree-year observational

studyof 1 0 , 000 adolescentsagedbetween13and 16,

publishedinTheLancet,movedthedialforwardlast

week.It was widely reportedintheUKpressaswell

asby CNNintheUSA–butnotevery mediaoutlet

tookthesameapproach.

TheIndependentandTheGuardianoptedforsimilar

headlinesthatsteppedaway from thedirectimpact

of socialmedia,proclaiming“Children’s lackof sleep

‘moreharmfulthan socialmediause’”.

TheTelegraphhomedinonthementalhealth

implicationsof widerissues. Theirnewsstory had the

headline:“Socialmediadamagesteenmentalhealth

throughcyber-bullying,sleeplossand too little

exercise”whiletheDailyMailtookasimilarapproach.

TheTelegraphalsoaskedtheacademicswho

ledthestudy,UCLGreatOrmondStreetInstitute

of ChildHealth’s RussellViner, to writean opinion

pieceentitled:“Socialmedianeedn’t beharmful–if

parentsknow whattheirchildrenarewatching”.

Meanwhile,othertitlesinterpretedthestudyin

theoppositeway. Both theFinancialTimesandThe

Sunsuggestedthatsocialmediadidhaveadirect

impacton teenagers. TheFToptedfor: “Socialmedia

damagesteenagers’mentalhealth,studyshows”,

asforTheSun,theywentfor: “DISGRACEBOOK.

Facebookand Instagramaredamagingchildren’s

mentalhealth,majorstudywarns”.

Illustration:Miles Cole But which approach is right?

REPEATING

WORTH

Stats:

Th

eLanc

et,

MQ,

Chi

ef

Me

dical O

ffic

er

ofUK

teenagers

usethe

internet

forsocial

networking

90%

75%

ofallmental

health

problemsare

established

before age 18

theestimatedcost

oftreatingofmental

health issues in the UK

£100bn