Social Media Use Motives and Mental Health Among Adolescents: Cross-Sectional Study

Social media use is ubiquitous among young people, yet its relationship with mental health may depend on why it is used. Understanding the motives underlying social media engagement may provide greater insights into its potential risks and benefits than considering overall use alone.

This study aimed to identify latent dimensions of motives for social media use and examine their associations with anxiety, depression, well-being, and resilience in a sample of older adolescents.

Cross-sectional data were drawn from the BrainWaves study (N=6820; mean age 16.72, SD 0.74 years). Social media use motives were assessed using 10 items and exploratory factor analysis identified 2 latent dimensions: avoidant-escapist use (boredom, addiction, distraction, and procrastination) and social-recreational use (socializing, communication, entertainment, and observation). Confirmatory factor analysis was used to estimate factor scores, which were examined using linear regression. Structural equation modeling estimated associations with anxiety, depression, well-being, and resilience, with secondary analyses accounting for gender and deprivation.

Linear regression analyses showed that avoidant-escapist motives were associated with higher anxiety and depressive symptoms, whereas social-recreational motives were associated with lower symptoms. No interactions with gender or deprivation were observed. The structural equation model showed acceptable model fit (comparative fit index=0.945; root mean squared error of approximation=0.057; standardized root mean squared residual=0.054). Avoidant-escapist motives were associated with higher anxiety (β=0.543) and depressive symptoms (β=0.629) and lower well-being (β=-0.610) and resilience (β=-0.469). Conversely, social-recreational motives were associated with lower anxiety (β=-0.228) and depressive symptoms (β=-0.342) and higher well-being (β=0.362) and resilience (β=0.242; P<.001 in all cases). These patterns remained consistent after accounting for gender and deprivation.

Social media use shows different associations with older adolescent mental health depending on underlying motives. Focusing on why young people engage with social media rather than on overall use alone may provide a more informative framework for understanding potential risks and benefits. Given the cross-sectional design, causal inferences cannot be made.