Australian Youth Maintained Stable Mental Health Before Social Media Boom: Research

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Social media has taken a toll on the mental health of young Australians, a new report has revealed.

On July 4, the non-partisan economic think tank e61 Institute published a report on youth mental health from 2001 to 2022, using data from the Household, Income, Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) Survey.

It showed that the mental wellbeing of Australian youth was relatively stable until the rise of social media platforms in the early 2010s.

Between 2010 and 2022, the mental health of young females fell from 73 percent to 62 percent for the first time in 20 years. Young males also experienced a decline in their mental health scores, though less dramatically, from 75 percent to 67.5 percent.

This period coincides with pivotal moments in the social media landscape, such as the launch and widespread popularity of Instagram and Snapchat, the introduction of the video share function known as “stories,” and the launch of Facebook’s “like” button.

“We find that young women born since the late 1990s—who are now aged 15 to around 27—have, on average, strikingly lower self-reported mental health than their older female counterparts, and all men regardless of their birth year,” researchers said.

Women and girls aged 15 to 24 report the highest rates of social media use, engaging with platforms almost daily, which made them more vulnerable to the health-related impacts of social media.

Increased Isolation

Additionally, the deterioration in mental wellbeing corresponded with a decline in social connections and an increase in social isolation, particularly for young women.

The friendship index is based on responses to the statement “I seem to have a lot of friends,” with an average score between -3 and 3. The average score of young females fell from around 1 in 2011 to close to 0 by 2022, while the score of young males dropped from 1.2 to 0.5 in 2022.

The research is part of the think tank’s submission to the Joint Select Committee on Social Media and Australian Society, which was established in May to examine Meta’s decision to withdraw from agreements under the News Media Bargaining Code and broader issues related to the impact of social media.

Exposure To Extremist Ideologies

The report comes amidst concerns about the danger of youth radicalisation due to social media exposure following a stabbing incident at the University of Sydney.

On July 3, a 14-year-old boy wearing a camouflage military uniform stabbed a 22-year-old student in the neck with a kitchen knife on campus.

He had previously been involved in a deradicalisation program, and was arrested last year with the charge dismissed.

“We are seeing some really concerning trends in the presentation of terrorism in our country, and in fact these are global trends,” Home Affairs Minister Clare O'Neil told Seven’s Sunrise program on July 3.

“We’ve got some really concerning things going on here that we need to get a handle on.”

Meanwhile, a study in 2023 showed social media have “detrimental effects” on body satisfaction and mood states for both men and women.