Regular social media use across early adolescence is related to worse reading and vocabulary development over time, according to new research from the University of Georgia.
The study found that adolescents who used social media more often each day tend to struggle with recognizing and pronouncing words.
The new findings come just as Australia became the first country to ban children under 16 from using social media. As other countries consider similar measures, and social media platforms roll out age verification to restrict adolescents' online activity, the study raises additional concerns on the impact of social media and screen use on childhood development, the researchers said.
"The brain is like a muscle. The more you use it, the more it changes according to however you're using it," said Cory Carvalho, lead author of the study who received his doctorate from the UGA College of Family and Consumer Sciences. "If you think of the Olympics, the figure skaters are really good at figure skating because they spend eight hours a day doing it. Their muscles are wired to be figure skating machines.
"If kids spend over eight hours a day using social media, that's what their brains are going to adapt to and be wired for."
Spending excessive time on social media linked to weaker reading skills, vocabulary
The study relied on longitudinal data from the ongoing Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development study, which follows more than 10,000 adolescents over six years starting around age 10.
The researchers found that frequent social media use was linked to struggles with reading and vocabulary across four years.
"There's a time cost to social media use. If you're spending time doing one thing, that means you're not spending time doing another thing," Carvalho said. "Other studies found that the more kids are using social media, the less they're reading, so reading development lags behind. We also found this with their vocabulary."
Weaker reading and vocabulary skills could impact a child's school performance.
Children who used social media more often also struggled with attentional control across the same period. This could be because juggling multiple tasks and frequent notifications disrupt kids' attention, but it's also possible that adolescents who already struggle with focusing are more likely to use social media, the researchers said.
Kids who use social media more tend to process information faster
Not all the impacts of social media use were negative, though, the researchers said. Children who were on social media frequently processed information faster and had shorter reaction times. However, the researchers cautioned that these observed benefits may be limited to screen-based assessments of processing speed, like the one used in the study.
"It's not necessarily that social media is having only these negative effects or only these positive effects," said Niyantri Ravindran, co-author of the study and an assistant professor in the UGA College of Family and Consumer Sciences. "The negative effects on vocabulary and reading are more expected because social media is potentially depriving kids of opportunities to engage in some of those higher-level cognitive skills."
Social media can also help children stay connected with others, especially if they're in an environment where making friends is difficult, the researchers said.
Limiting screen time, waiting to get kids a smartphone could build better habits
To help combat those negative effects, the researchers suggest limiting screen time for adolescents, especially before bed. They also recommend waiting until kids are older to purchase a smartphone.
If parents do need to stay in touch with their kids, a "dumb phone" that can't access social media could also be an option, the researchers said.
"Social media is new, so everybody's trying to figure out what we do with this new paradigm," Carvalho said. "Kids like it. Adults like it. And everybody uses it.
"What you're going to see is that a lot of different states, countries and organizations are going to try different things. Hopefully, we settle on some norms that work for kids and not for profits."
The study was published in the Journal of Research on Adolescence.
