European Business Schools Librarian's Group
HEC Research Papers Series,
HEC Paris
No 1567: A Consensus Statement on Potential Negative Impacts of Smartphone and Social Media Use on Adolescent Mental Health
Valerio Capraro, Laura Globig, Zachary Rausch, Steve Rathje, Alexandra Wormley, Jay Olson, Robert Ross, Sinan Aşçı, Ayoub Bouguettaya, Kaitlyn Burnell,
et al (119 additional author(s))
Sophia Choukas-Bradley, Jasmine Fardouly, Rachel Kowert, Richard Lopez, Anne Maheux, Dan-Mircea Mirea, Phillip Ozimek, Dylan Selterman, Tara Thiagarajan, Laura Vandenbosch, Sammy Wals, Elia Abi-Jaoude, Perry Adler, Kara Alaimo, Jon-Patrick Allem, Vahid Ashrafi, Susanne E. Baumgartner, Patrick Bender, Gaia Bernstein, Syon Bhanot, Emily Bilek, Michel Boivin, Luca Braghieri, Julia Brailovskaia, Justin Brienza, Cameron Bunker, Romain Cadario, Celeste Campos-Castillo, Jason Chein, Lynn Clark, Jason Colditz, Mark Coulson, Amelia Couture Bue, Sarah M. Coyne, Thomas Curran, Serena Daalmans, Diag Davenport, Meredith David, Chris Davis, Katie Davis, Munmun De Choudhury, Tim Derksen, Linda Dezső, Sarah E. Domoff, Morgan Ellithorpe, Elizabeth K. Englander, Samira Farivar, Daniel Fernández-Kranz, Jacob Fisher, Joy Gabrielli, Douglas Gentile, Matthew Gentzkow, Osea Giuntella, Biljana Gjoneska, Melanie Green, Lauren Hale, John Haltigan, Jessica Hamilton, Tilo Hartmann, Benjamin Hilbig, Stephen P. Hinshaw, Jillian Hmurovic, Beth Hoffman, Matthew Hornsey, Melissa Hunt, Sophie Janicke-Bowles, El-Lim Kim, Daria J. Kuss, David S. Lee, Ro'ee Levy, Nason Maani, Alexey Makarin, Tamar Mendelson, Minas Michikyan, Diana Miconi, Luca Milani, Kathryn Modecki, Andras Molnar, Jessica Navarro, Stefano Pagliarani, Vincent Paquin, Douglas Parry, Nicholas Pavic, Sarah Pila, Marc N. Potenza, Thomas Potrebny, Brian Primack, Phil Reed, Yefim Roth, Pamela Rutledge, Fabio Sabatini, Dasha Sandra, Daniel Sazhin, Ariel Shensa, L. J. Shrum, Ze'ev Shtudiner, Elida Sina, Michael Sobolev, Eszter Somogyi, Lena Song, Helen Thai, Johannes Thrul, Marika Tiggemann, Roberto Truzoli, Tyler J. VanderWeele, Samuel Veissiere, Carol Vidal, Marek Vranka, Joshua Watson, Elisa Wegmann, Paul Weigle, Whitney Whitted, Simon Wilksch, Mark Williams, Ning Zhang, Laura Zimmermann, Ethan Kross, Jonathan Haidt and Jay J. Van
Additional contact information
Valerio Capraro: Università degli Studi di Milano-Bicocca - Department of Psychology
Laura Globig: New York University (NYU) - New York University
Zachary Rausch: New York University (NYU)
Steve Rathje: New York University (NYU)
Alexandra Wormley: University of Michigan
Jay Olson: University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
Robert Ross: Macquarie University
Sinan Aşçı: Dublin City University
Ayoub Bouguettaya: Cedars Sinai Medical Center
Kaitlyn Burnell: University of North Carolina (UNC) at Chapel Hill - University of North Carolina School of Law
Sophia Choukas-Bradley: University of Pittsburgh
Jasmine Fardouly: The University of Sydney
Rachel Kowert: University of York
Richard Lopez: Worcester Polytechnic Institute
Anne Maheux: University of North Carolina (UNC) at Chapel Hill - University of North Carolina School of Law
Dan-Mircea Mirea: Princeton University - Princeton University
Phillip Ozimek: Ruhr University of Bochum - Mental Health Research and Treatment Center
Dylan Selterman: John Hopkins University
Tara Thiagarajan: Sapien Labs
Laura Vandenbosch: KU Leuven
Sammy Wals: RWTH Aachen University
Elia Abi-Jaoude: University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
Perry Adler: Jewish General Hospital, Montreal
Kara Alaimo: Fairleigh Dickinson University
Jon-Patrick Allem: Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey - School of Public Health
Vahid Ashrafi: Stevens Institute of Technology - School of Business
Susanne E. Baumgartner: University of Amsterdam
Patrick Bender: Aalborg University
Gaia Bernstein: Seton Hall Law School
Syon Bhanot: Swarthmore College
Emily Bilek: University of Michigan
Michel Boivin: Université Laval
Luca Braghieri: Bocconi University - Department of Decision Sciences
Julia Brailovskaia: Ruhr University of Bochum
Justin Brienza: University of Queensland
Cameron Bunker: Emerson College
Romain Cadario: Erasmus University, Rotterdam School of Management
Celeste Campos-Castillo: University of Washington
Jason Chein: Temple University
Lynn Clark: University of Denver
Jason Colditz: University of Pittsburgh
Mark Coulson: University of West London
Amelia Couture Bue: University of Maine
Sarah M. Coyne: Brigham Young University, School of Family Life
Thomas Curran: London School of Economics
Serena Daalmans: Radboud University Nijmegen - Radboud University Nijmegen
Diag Davenport: UC Berkeley
Meredith David: Baylor University
Chris Davis: Carleton University
Katie Davis: University of Washington - The Information School
Munmun De Choudhury: Georgia Institute of Technology - School of Interactive Computing
Tim Derksen: University of Alberta - School of Business
Linda Dezső: Danube University Krems
Sarah E. Domoff: University at Albany, SUNY
Morgan Ellithorpe: University of Delaware
Elizabeth K. Englander: Bridgewater State University
Samira Farivar: Carleton University
Daniel Fernández-Kranz: IE Business School
Jacob Fisher: Michigan State University
Joy Gabrielli: University of Florida
Douglas Gentile: Iowa State University
Matthew Gentzkow: Stanford University
Osea Giuntella: University of Oxford
Biljana Gjoneska: Macedonian Academy of Sciences and Arts
Melanie Green: University at Buffalo
Lauren Hale: State University of New York (SUNY), Stony Brook
John Haltigan: University of Buckingham
Jessica Hamilton: Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey - School of Arts and Sciences
Tilo Hartmann: Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
Benjamin Hilbig: RPTU Kaiserslautern-Landau
Stephen P. Hinshaw: University of California, Berkeley - Department of Psychology
Jillian Hmurovic: Pennsylvania State University
Beth Hoffman: University of Pittsburgh
Matthew Hornsey: University of Queensland
Melissa Hunt: University of Pennsylvania
Sophie Janicke-Bowles: Chapman University
El-Lim Kim: Franklin and Marshall College
Daria J. Kuss: Nottingham Trent University
David S. Lee: State University of New York (SUNY) - University at Buffalo
Ro'ee Levy: Tel Aviv University - Eitan Berglas School of Economics
Nason Maani: University of Edinburgh
Alexey Makarin: Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) - Sloan School of Management; Einaudi Institute for Economics and Finance (EIEF); Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR)
Tamar Mendelson: Johns Hopkins University - Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Students
Minas Michikyan: California State University
Diana Miconi: McGill University - Department of Psychiatry
Luca Milani: Catholic University of Milan
Kathryn Modecki: University of Western Australia
Andras Molnar: University of Michigan at Ann Arbor - Department of Psychology
Jessica Navarro: Elon University
Stefano Pagliarani: DEAMS, Università di Trieste
Vincent Paquin: McGill University
Douglas Parry: Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
Nicholas Pavic: Flinders University
Sarah Pila: Northwestern University
Marc N. Potenza: Yale University - Department of Psychiatry
Thomas Potrebny: Western Norway University of Applied Sciences
Brian Primack: University of Pittsburgh - Medical Center (UPMC)
Phil Reed: Swansea University - Department of Psychology
Yefim Roth: University of Haifa
Pamela Rutledge: Fielding Graduate University, Media Psychology; Media Psychology Research Center
Fabio Sabatini: Sapienza University of Rome
Dasha Sandra: University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
Daniel Sazhin: Temple University
Ariel Shensa: University of Pittsburgh - School of Medicine
L. J. Shrum: HEC Paris
Ze'ev Shtudiner: Ariel University - Department of Economics
Elida Sina: Freiburg University
Michael Sobolev: Leonard D. Schaeffer Center for Health Policy & Economics, University of Southern California
Eszter Somogyi: University of Portsmouth
Lena Song: The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Helen Thai: McGill University
Johannes Thrul: Johns Hopkins University - Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Marika Tiggemann: Flinders University
Roberto Truzoli: University of Milan
Tyler J. VanderWeele: Harvard University; Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
Samuel Veissiere: Université du Québec
Carol Vidal: John Hopkins University
Marek Vranka: Prague University of Economics and Business; Charles University in Prague
Joshua Watson: Texas A&M University (TAMU), Central Texas
Elisa Wegmann: University of Duisburg-Essen
Paul Weigle: Hartford HealthCare
Whitney Whitted: Ohio State University (OSU)
Simon Wilksch: Flinders University
Mark Williams: Macquarie University
Ning Zhang: Zhejiang University
Laura Zimmermann: IE University
Ethan Kross: University of Michigan at Ann Arbor
Jonathan Haidt: New York University (NYU) - Leonard N. Stern School of Business
Jay J. Van: New York University (NYU) - Department of Psychology & Neural Science
Abstract: The impact of smartphones and social media use on adolescent mental health remains widely debated. To clarify expert opinion, we convened over 120 international researchers from 11 disciplines, representing a broad range of views. Using a Delphi method, the panel evaluated 26 claims covering international trends in adolescent mental health, causal links to smartphones and social media, and policy recommendations. The experts suggested 1,400 references and produced a consensus statement for each claim. The following conclusions were rated as accurate or somewhat accurate by 92–97% of respondents: First, adolescent mental health has declined in several Western countries over the past 20 years. Second, heavy smartphone and social media use can cause sleep problems. Third, smartphone and social media use correlate with attention problems and behavioural addiction. Fourth, among girls, social media use may be associated with body dissatisfaction, perfectionism, exposure to mental disorders, and risk of sexual harassment and predation. Fifth, evidence on social deprivation and relational aggression is limited. Sixth, the evidence for policies like age restrictions and school bans is preliminary. Overall, the results of this deliberative process and the set of concrete recommendations provided can help guide future research and evidence-informed policy on adolescent technology use.
Keywords: social media; mental health; adolescence; consensus statement; sleep; addiction; attention; sociality; development; cyberbulling; harassment; social contagion; body image; policymaking; interventions
JEL-codes: I10
206 pages, May 17, 2025
Note: Declaration of Interest Laura K. Globig reports supported by a grant from Google Inc., a grant from the Roddenberry Foundation, and the Dana Foundation. Zach Rausch reports he is Jonathan Haidt’s chief researcher. Steve Rathje reports: “provided consulting for the state of New Mexico regarding a case related to Meta”. Robert M. Ross. discloses support for the research of this work from the John Templeton Foundation [grant number 62631]. Kaitlyn Burnell reports: “has served as a paid consultant on social media litigation”. Anne Maheux reports: “I am supported in part by the Winston Family Foundation.” Dylan Selterman reports: “I was hired by Snap Inc. in 2024 to provide expert consultation with regards to the science of social media use and well-being as part of ongoing litigation.” Jon-Patrick Allem reports: “I have received fees for consulting services in court cases involving social media content. I have no other conflicts of interest to disclose.” Gaia Bernstein reports: “Board Member Fairplay for Kids”. Sarah Domoff reports: “Dr. Domoff was on the board of the Smart Gen Society until May 2024. In 2023, Dr. Domoff consulted with Pixel Digital Health, LLC, on their school-based prevention curriculum.” Matthew Gentzkow reports: “In the past five years, Matthew Gentzkow has been a paid consultant for Amazon and done economic consulting for Analysis Group and Compass Lexecon. Clients for this economic consulting work include Facebook and Google. In this period he has received compensation as a member of the Toulouse Network for Information Technology, a research group funded in part by Microsoft, and as a member of a review panel for the Sloan Foundation.” Lauren Hale reports: “Scientific Advisory Board (voluntary) of the Children and Screens: Institute of Digital Media and Child Development; Good Night Advisory Council (voluntary) of the Pajama Program; Honoraria from National Sleep Foundation; Honoraria from Children and Screens Institute of Digital Media and Child Development; Expert witness; Research support from Stephen and Pamela Della Pietra Family Foundation” Ro’ee Levy reports: “I am an unpaid member of Facebook’s 2020 Election Research Project.” Dr. Potenza reports: “no conflicts of interest with respect to the content of this manuscript. Dr. Potenza discloses that he has consulted for and advised Baria-Tek and Boehringer Ingelheim; been involved in a patent application with Yale University and Novartis; received research support from the Mohegan Sun Casino and the Connecticut Council on Problem Gambling; consulted for or advised legal, non-profit, healthcare and gambling entities on issues related to impulse control, internet use and addictive behaviors; performed grant reviews; edited journals/journal sections; given academic lectures in grand rounds, CME events, and other clinical/scientific venues; and generated books or chapters for publishers of mental health texts.” Johannes Thrul reports: “no conflicts of interest, but for transparency notes that he is the PI of a research grant on digital wellbeing from Aramco Services Company, a subsidiary of Saudi Aramco.” Pamela Rutledge reports: “Unpaid participation in a free educational monthly webinar/podcast discussing digital literacy for parents and teachers.” Elisa Wegmann reports: “I have no conflict of interest with regard to the current publication. My work is partly funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG).” Ethan Kross reports: “Kross received a grant from Facebook to fund research several years ago”. Jonathan Haidt declares that he is the author of the book used to develop the claims examined in this article. Jay Van Bavel reports: “has received funding from Google Jigsaw, has consulted for Microsoft News (MSN), and has participated in expert testimony for the state of New Mexico in a case related to Meta.” The other authors did not declare conflicts of interests. Funder Statement Laura K. Globig reports supported by a grant from Google Inc., a grant from the Roddenberry Foundation, and the Dana Foundation. Robert M. Ross. discloses support for the research of this work from the John Templeton Foundation [grant number 62631]. Elisa Wegmann reports: “My work is partly funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG).”
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