While 48% of teenagers recognize that 'SNS has a negative influence on people their age,' many more have a positive impression of SNS, saying that 'SNS is a place for communication and self-expression.'

The Pew Research Center, an American think tank, announced the results of an online survey of 1,391 American teenagers and their parents. The results revealed that while an increasing number of young people believe that social media has a negative impact, there are also more young people who see positive value in social media as a place to connect with friends and express their creativity.

Social Media and Teens' Mental Health: What Teens and Their Parents Say | Pew Research Center
https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2025/04/22/teens-social-media-and-mental-health/

Social media is not wholly terrible for teen mental health, study says | TechCrunch
https://techcrunch.com/2025/04/22/social-media-is-not-wholly-terrible-for-teen-mental-health-study-says/

The negative effects of social media are already well known, and Meta's internal investigation revealed that it recognized that 'Instagram is harmful to teenagers.'

It turns out that Facebook has always known that Instagram is harmful to teenagers - GIGAZINE

The former U.S. Surgeon General has also issued advice regarding the risks of young people using social media.

Report: Social media can have positive but serious risks for children and young people; Surgeon General urges policymakers and tech companies to act - GIGAZINE

In a survey conducted by the Pew Research Center from September 18 to October 10, 2024, 48% of teenagers said that 'SNS has a negative impact on people their age,' a significant increase from 32% in a similar survey conducted in 2022. However, only 14% said that 'SNS has a negative impact on myself,' and conversely, 28% said that 'SNS has a positive impact on myself.'

When asked about the negative effects of social media, 45% said it had a negative impact on their sleep, 40% said it had a negative impact on their productivity, 19% said it had a negative impact on their mental health, and 22% said it had a negative impact on their academic performance.

Furthermore, in terms of usage time, 45% of teenagers are aware that they spend too much time on social media. This is because in the 2022 survey, the figure was 36%, meaning that more young people feel that social media is taking up their time. In addition, 27% of teenagers responded that 'social media sometimes makes them feel negative about their lives,' and 31% reported feeling socially alienated, like 'I'm being left behind by my friends.'

There was also a difference in the perception of social media between teenagers and their parents. For example, 35% of teenagers said they were 'very concerned' or 'quite concerned' about the negative impact on mental health, compared with 55% of parents. Parents were more likely than their children to point out the negative effects of social media, with 44% of parents who expressed concern about their mental health citing social media as the main cause of the negative impact.

On the other hand, 74% of teenagers said that 'SNS makes me feel more connected to what's going on in my friends' lives.' In addition, 63% said that 'SNS is a place to express creativity,' 52% said that 'SNS has people who support me in difficult times,' and 52% said that 'I feel accepted on SNS.' Many young people also expressed positive impressions of SNS. These results show that SNS, which is often criticized, also plays an important role for young people as a place of social connection, self-expression, and support.

Tech Crunch, an IT news site, points out that 'As the US government tries to pass a bill to regulate social media for teenagers, the survey results suggest that some young people believe that social media has a positive effect.'