Screen "addiction" and mental health

Welcome back, sapiens!

Today’s post is a collaboration with Dr. Cara Goodwin, child psychologist and founder of the nonprofit Parenting Translator. You may be familiar with her hugely popular Instagram and newsletter, particularly if you (like me) love a good piece of research-backed parenting advice.

What you may *not* already know is that Cara and I overlapped in the Clinical Psychology PhD program at UNC Chapel Hill—and when I search for Cara’s name in my inbox, there’s a 13-year-old (!) email from her, very kindly offering to pick me up from the airport for my campus visit.

I do not remember this car ride well,1 but I can only assume Cara was as skilled at driving as she is at delivering actionable, digestible, and evidence-based guidance for parents. If you’re not already following her newsletter, I highly recommend subscribing here!

7 min read

Maybe you’ve noticed: in the past few weeks, the latest round of scary, screen-related headlines has arrived:

“Real Risk to Youth Mental Health Is ‘Addictive Use,’ Not Screen Time Alone, Study Finds” (The New York Times)

“Why Parents Should Focus on Screen Addiction Over Screen Time, Says New Study” (Parents)

“Screen addiction and suicidal behaviors are linked for teens, a study shows” (NPR)

So, what should we make of these findings? Should we get rid of screen time limits? Is “screen addiction” a real diagnosis? And where do we go from here?

Tell me about the study

For this new paper, published last month in JAMA, researchers analyzed data from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study, a massive, ongoing study of child health that’s following thousands of kids across the U.S.

This particular project involved 4,285 tweens2 who participated at three time points, spanning ages 10 to 14.

The following measures were collected:

• Addictive screen use. The kids filled out surveys assessing addictive use of three types of screens: phones, social media, and video games.

• Screen time. Kids also reported the total number of hours (0-24) they spend per day on screens for non-school activities.

• Mental health symptoms. Parents reported whether kids had symptoms of a range of concerns, like depression, anxiety, and behavior problems.

• Suicidal ideation and behavior. Both parents and kids were interviewed about whether the child had any suicidal thoughts or attempts over the past few years.

The researchers then ...