Relationship between Problematic Social Media Use and Mental Health: The Moderating Role of Sex

Background Social media has become a ubiquitous part of modern life. As social media is increasingly integrated into adolescents' daily life, numerous studies have explored its effects on their mental health. However, the evidence on these remains inconsistent, as these relationships are influenced by various factors, including individual differences and patterns of engagement. One key factor is problematic social media use (PSMU), which refers to addiction-like symptoms resulting from excessive social media use and is considered a significant predictor of mental health outcomes. This study aims to investigate the relationship between PSMU and mental health, with a particular focus on the moderating role of sex. The differential susceptibility to media effects model is used to support the proposed hypotheses.

Methods The current study conducts a secondary data analysis using the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) dataset. The total sample consisted of 12,794 participants, and 6,364 (49.1%) were male and 6,586 (50.9%) were female. The age ranged from10.8 to 16.4 years with a mean age of 13.65 years (SD = 1.47). To examine the moderation effect of sex on the relationship between PSMU and mental health, a regression analysis was conducted using Hayes' PROCESS macro in SPSS with 10,000 bootstrapping.

Results According to the descriptive analysis, the mean of mental health was 2.31 (SD=1.04) with a range of 1 to 5. The mean of PSMU was 1.63 (SD=2.06)with a range of 0 to 9. The most common symptom of PSMU was the inability to spend less time on social media, which accounted for 20.1%. The correlation between PSMU and mental health was significant and positive, r = .320, p < .001. The results of regression analysis indicated that PSMU was significantly associated with mental health outcomes (B= .105, p < .001), suggesting that higher levels of PSMU are associated with poorer mental health. Additionally, the interaction was significant (B = .067, p < .001), indicating that the effect of PSMU on mental health differed by sex. The simple slopes analysis revealed that the relationship between PSMU and mental health was stronger for females (B = .172, p < .001) than for males (B = .105, p < .001), suggesting that females experience a more pronounced negative impact of PSMU on their mental health compared to males.

Conclusions This study provides important evidence that PSMU can be negatively associated with adolescent mental health, with the impact being stronger for females than males. The study also has significant implications for social work practice. It’s essential for social workers to understand how social media use impacts the mental health and well-being of adolescents. Social media plays a major role in their lives, particularly during the critical stages of identity development. However, its influence on happiness and mental health has often been overlooked in social work. Given the findings, social workers need to be aware of how social media can affect adolescents’ mental health, especially recognizing that the negative effects may be more pronounced among girls than boys.