PROBLEM: Teens have always experienced mental health and social challenges. Social media use amplifies these negative experiences, and parents and teens can’t keep up. While the research is mixed on digital media use in general, it is clear that like and share buttons increase negative social comparisons: these features hurt teens, especially girls. Parents have always had to keep teens safe through adolescence. However, social media presents a faster, bigger, and deeper problem, new research is emerging daily, and parents are struggling to keep pace.

PARTNERS: We consulted with pediatricians, psychiatrists, researchers, school leaders, and social media advocates to better understand the existing and emerging research and the tools available to parents, and we relied on their expertise to create a single resource with the latest news, research, and guidance to help teens navigate social media safely.

SOLUTION: We created “Your Brain on Social Media,” an online resource with academic and medical research, news, legal action, and guidance for parents and counselors to get the most up-to-date information on the impact of social media on teen mental health. The website is updated daily and also includes a companion newsletter that shares new findings as they come in.

ADOPTION: This site just launched in the summer of 2023 and already has hundreds of visitors each week. Stay tuned for more!

Learn More About Your Brain on Social Media