Social Media and Youth Mental Health

Although the near ubiquity of social media in modern society has raised
important questions about its potentially detrimental impacts on youth,
discussions often center on its individual effects, largely on risks,
prioritizing adult perspectives over young people's lived experience. Social
Media and Youth Mental Health offers a broader, multi-generational
perspective.

Examining the influence of social media on children and young
people from many different yet interconnected angles, the book draws from the
expertise of 41 scholars and clinicians around the world. It explores more than
a dozen different aspects of social media as they pertain to youth mental
health, including:

Representations of sexuality in social media
Diversity, bullying, and hateful speech on online platforms Online privacy The
role of agency in media use and mental health The effect of media multitasking
on developing brains The impact of social media on racial, gender, sexual, and
class identities The relationship between social media and self-harm and
suicide

In addition to discussing the valid concerns about the influence
of social media on youth mental health, this book explores the potentially
positive role that social media can play in clinical applications, devoting a
chapter to its possible use both as a method for disseminating psychoeducation
and as a component of digital intervention.

Importantly, Social Media and
Youth Mental Health incorporates the voices and perspectives of children and
adolescents themselves-too often excluded from the public discourse-throughout
the book and in a special chapter that examines the agency and experiences of
the young people at the center of the public discussion.

Pragmatic and
rich in detailed, evidence-based information, this guide offers a foundational
framework from which policymakers, industry leaders, mental health
professionals, and researchers can develop a shared understanding of the issue's
complexities and promote the urgent need for a new phase of innovation and
design that prioritizes health and well-being.