As observed by Jean Twenge and others, social media use among adolescents correlates with a worrying uptick in depression and suicidal ideation, especially among teen girls. A new two-year study from the Education Policy Institute and Prince’s Trust has found that:
Based on the new findings, researchers determine that the experience of the pandemic is likely to continue to exacerbate existing mental health and wellbeing problems among young people. National estimates show that 1 in 6 young people now have a probable mental illness – up from 1 in 9.
This is yet another reason why politicians should prioritize getting children off their phones and back into school.