Mark Zuckerberg, the CEO of Meta, Facebook’s parent company, recently testified before Congress about the potential negative impact of social media on young people’s mental health. He claimed that there is no scientific evidence linking social media use to mental health issues in young people. However, a study published in the American Economic Review in November 2022 found a clear link between Facebook use and symptoms of depression and anxiety among college students. The study’s coauthor, MIT economist Alexey Makarin, disagrees with Zuckerberg’s statement and believes that there is still much to be explored in this area. The concern arises from the fact that the majority of teenagers are active users of social media platforms such as TikTok, Instagram, and Snapchat, with a significant increase in depression symptoms, particularly among girls.
2024-02-20 07:30:00
Link from www.sciencenews.org