How does Social Media affect Adolescents Brain Development?
An exploration to see how social media affects adolescents brain development
You were there, scrolling on your phone, and then all of sudden jolted up to look at the time and realized you have been scrolling for over an hour. You get up and realize your brain is foggy and you are ready to go back to bed… it is not just you, it is many other adolescents.
Click the video to learn more adolescents view towards social media.
Social media has been constantly evolving as time goes on. Instagram, Snapchat, Facebook, Twitter, and Tiktok are platforms that many of us use daily to do different things. But the one thing many of us have in common is the amount of aimless scrolling we do. The amount of attention we give social media in our lives really affects us. It can change the way you perceive yourself, your attention span, how you dress, and what you want in life. It has that big of an influence… even on your brain!
On average, adolescents use social media 5-7.5 hours per day.
Nucleus Accumbens
Nucleus Accumbens
Prefrontal Cortex
Amygdala
The nucleus accumbens is a part of your brain located in the ventral striatum in your brain. The ventral striatum focuses on reward processing. So when you do something enjoyable and satisfying (eating food, exercising, listening to music, etc.) your dopamine neurons are activated.
When it comes to social media, your nucleus accumbens in your brain lights up when you log on to social media, and you see posts like…
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Your friend's posts
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Great food
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Beach pictures
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Your sports team winning!
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Quick videos
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Dancing images
The content immediately grabs your attention and makes you want to be a part of it. In teens, the reward pathway develops way faster than the reasoning portions of the brain. The reasoning parts of the brain like the cerebrum helps make decisions based on logic. Whereas with the reward pathways, developing way faster, and since they are developing way faster you are more likely to make decisions based on what you will enjoy more. Because you enjoy going on social media over doing the dishes, and you are constantly logging on to social media, something new excites you, even more, you start to form an addiction. When forming this addiction, the need to check social media, you are strengthening a neural pathway in your brain. It is just like riding a bike, every time you try, you get a little bit better, a little more balance which then leads you to be able to ride considerably faster.
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If all you saw on social media was petite girls with abs in bathing suits on your social media feed, and those girls are getting many likes. That triggers your brain to think “That’s what I can do to get many likes…to look like her, to be petite and have abs.” If you keep seeing more of these girls with these features, it is strengthening that neural pathway in your brain to think that is only what is okay on social media and in "real life". If you were to post a picture similar to this and your post gets plenty of likes your reward pathway lights up with your excitement to continue to pursue your social media platforms.
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As you can see social media has the ability to form and influence opinions and by doing that change the way your brain thinks. Social media is a powerful tool. Social Media does not have to be completely cut out of your life but used in moderation. It is also very important to be aware of what types of content you are consuming - intentionally and unintentionally and make sure it is healthy for your mental health. Overconsumption of negative information can lead to health issues.
Sources Used:
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“Brain Anatomy and How the Brain Works.” Johns Hopkins Medicine, John Hopkins Medicine, https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/anatomy-of-the-brain#:~:text=The%20largest%20part%20of%20the,hearing%2C%20touch%20and%20other%20senses.
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Darmanjian, Sarah. “Kids, Teens, and Social Media.” NEWS10 ABC, NEWS10 ABC, 28 Jan. 2022, https://www.news10.com/news/kids-teens-and-social-media/#:~:text=ALBANY%2C%20N.Y.,survey%20from%20Common%20Sense%20Media.
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East, Susie. “Teens: This Is How Social Media Affects Your Brain.” CNN, Cable News Network, 1 Aug. 2016, https://www.cnn.com/2016/07/12/health/social-media-brain/index.html.
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“How the Brain Works.” Self Esteem Building Activities and Lessons, Self Esteem Experts, http://www.self-esteem-experts.com/how-the-brain-works.html.
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“Know Your Brain: Nucleus Accumbens.” @Neurochallenged, Neuroscientifically Challenged, https://neuroscientificallychallenged.com/posts/know-your-brain-nucleus-accumbens.
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Narang, Shivek. “The Effect of Social Media on the Teenage Brain.” Our Teen Brains, 28 Nov. 2020, https://ourteenbrains.org/blogs/the-effect-of-social-media-on-the-teenage-brain/.
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Pictures: 1 - Melina Marangoudakis on her iPad.
2 - Wix Brain Graphic with added arrows.