The benefits and harms of social media use for young adults with common mental health disorders presenting to primary care

An estimated 91% of 16-24-year-olds use social media.

Evidence suggests social media can have harmful effects on young adults’ mental health (MH) but there are potential benefits, e.g. prompting help-seeking. Young adults often present to primary care with common MH problems, but many face barriers seeking help and accessing primary care.

We explored benefits of social media use, investigating how social media campaigns encourage young adults with common MH problems to seek help and change people’s attitudes towards MH.

Interviews with young adults explored perceptions of effects of social media use on their MH, barriers and facilitators to seeking help for MH concerns, and how negative effects of social media on young adults’ MH should be managed in primary care.

Findings featured in the national press, were presented nationally/internationally, and led to collaboration with industry partners Meta and Zinc, and an invitation to speak at the EU Business Summit 2023.

UCL - NIHR School of Primary Care Research

University of Bristol – NIHR School of Public Health Research