Social media: What needs to change to improve the mental health of young people?
FAU is part of a European collaborative project that will receive 1.5 million euros in funding
How must we rethink social media to improve the mental health of young people? This is the focus of the international research project “PROMISE: Promoting Well-Being in Preteens, Adolescents, and Young Adults – Toward Improved Social Media Policies Among those involved is Prof. Adrian Meier, Professorship for Communication Science at Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU). The project is funded, among others, by the German Research Foundation (DFG) with a total of 1.5 million euros over three years.
Social media has long become an integral part of life, especially for young people. At the same time, there is growing suspicion of an international mental health crisis among young people. The intensive use of social media by many of them is often cited as a potential cause. The team of the interdisciplinary project “PROMISE: Promoting Well-Being in Preteens, Adolescents, and Young Adults – Toward Improved Social Media Policies” plans to investigate this suspicion with the aim of improving the mental health of young people. The DFG and other research funders are financing the project as part of the European CHANSE/NORFACE program “Enhancing wellbeing for the future” with a total of 1.5 million euros over three years.
Identifying measures to improve social media for young users
The goal of the project is to improve the impact of social media platforms like TikTok, Instagram, or Snapchat on the mental health of young people with specific and age-appropriate measures. These policies include, for example, a redesigned interface to filter problematic content like hate messages through adjusted algorithms or ban certain platform features. “We are particularly concerned with features that promote uncontrolled or harmful use,” explains communication scientist Professor Adrian Meier. “For example, infinite scrolling, where users can theoretically scroll indefinitely as the platform continuously loads new content. We need a safety barrier to act like a stop sign.
The researchers aim to systematize such measures and assess their potential to improve the digital wellbeing of young people. To identify measures tailored to young people in different age groups, the researchers are investigating social media use in preteens (10–12 years), adolescents (13–17 years), and young adults (18–25 years).
Evaluating measures in experiments
The process of systematizing and testing measures begins with summarizing current research. “We first want to get an overview of the measures that are being considered and assess how evidence-based they are,” explains Adrian Meier. Based on this, the researchers plan to conduct various experiments. In one experiment, participants use a social media platform similar to Instagram, where certain features are not included, such as infinite scrolling. Participants then answer questionnaires about their user experiences and wellbeing over several weeks, while data is collected on their digital behavior. To obtain the most meaningful data possible for future European regulations, participants come from all five countries involved in the project.
Evidence-based recommendations
From their findings, the researchers aim to derive evidence-based recommendations that protect the mental health and needs of young people. Researchers are collaborating with various practice partners, NGOs, and European regulatory authorities to ensure that recommendations can be drawn up effectively. Additionally, a youth advisory board and co-creation workshops enable the involvement of young people in shaping the measures.
PROMISE project website CHANSE/NORFACE program
Further information:
Prof. Dr. Adrian Meier
Professorship for Communication Science
adrian.meier@fau.de
PROMISE project