Cited by 166Impact of Technology on AdolescentsChild Development and Digital TechnologyMedia and Digital Communication

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The Impact of Internet and Social Media Use on Well-Being: A Longitudinal Analysis of Adolescents Across Nine Years

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Schemer, Christian, Masur, Philipp K, Geiß, Stefan, Müller, Philipp, Schäfer, Svenja·2021·Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication

DOI 10.1093/jcmc/zmaa014

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Abstract

Abstract The present research examines the longitudinal average impact of frequency of use of Internet and social networking sites (SNS) on subjective well-being of adolescents in Germany. Based on five-wave panel data that cover a period of nine years, we disentangle between-person and within-person effects of media use on depressive symptomatology and life satisfaction as indicators of subjective well-being. Additionally, we control for confounders such as TV use, self-esteem, and satisfaction with friends. We found that frequency of Internet use in general and use of SNS in particular is not substantially related subjective well-being. The explanatory power of general Internet use or SNS use to predict between-person differences or within-person change in subjective well-being is close to zero. TV use, a potentially confounding variable, is negatively related to satisfaction with life, but it does not affect depressive symptomatology. However, this effect is too small to be of practical relevance.

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Goh, Z. H., Tandoc, E. C., & Chan, V. X. (2022) · Behaviour and Information Technology · doi:10.1080/0144929x.2022.2134825 · Cited by 8
“Many studies have documented various negative outcomes of internet use, from the rise of misinformation (e.g. Tandoc and Lee 2022) to threats to well-being (e.g. Schemer et al. 2021).”
Background
Social Media Use
Dorčić, T. M., Smojver‐Ažić, S., & Bradić, S. (2024) · Psihologijske teme · doi:10.31820/pt.33.1.7 · Cited by 13
Prevalence and predictors of internet use among Ghanaian older adults: evidence from the Ghana 2021 Population and Housing Census
Kyei‐Arthur, F. (2024) · Humanities and Social Sciences Communications · doi:10.1057/s41599-024-03788-7 · Cited by 9
“…worldwide, these studies have focused mainly on adolescents (Bozkurt et al., 2018; Casaló and Escario, 2019; Chi et al., 2020; Dong et al., 2020; Schemer et al., 2021) and youths (Aslanidou and Menexes, 2008; Bakker and De Vreese, 2011; Prievara et al., 2019; Tomczyk et al., 2020) to the…”
Causal relationships between university students’ social media use and subjective well-being in Japan: Examination through two-wave panel survey
Ye, S., & Ho, K. K. W. (2025) · Current Psychology · doi:10.1007/s12144-025-07406-w · Cited by 8
“…cross-lagged effect model analysis, applies to quantitative variables, and usage time and post frequency are considered as the measurements of daily social media use (for example, Schemer et al., [2021] and Valkenburg et al. [2021]), we analyzed social media usage in the upper part of Fig.”
Possible futures all at once: time frame and time lag in short-term longitudinal media effects research on well-being
Klingelhoefer, J., Gilbert, A., Adrian, C., & Meier, A. (2025) · Journal of Communication · doi:10.1093/joc/jqaf037 · Cited by 8
Are You Getting Likes as Anticipated? Untangling the Relationship between Received Likes, Social Support from Friends, and Mental Health via Expectancy Violation Theory
Tang, J. L. (2022) · Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media · doi:10.1080/08838151.2022.2087654 · Cited by 8
“, 2015) including a longitudinal study with five waves (Schemer et al., 2021).”
Background
Facebook use and body dissatisfaction moderate the association between discrimination and suicidality among LGBQ individuals
Marciano, A., David, Y., & Antebi‐Gruszka, N. (2023) · Computers in Human Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.chb.2023.107729 · Cited by 8
The impact of seeing and posting photos on mental health and body satisfaction: A panel study among Dutch and Japanese adolescents
de Vaate, N. A. J. D. B., Veldhuis, J., & Konijn, E. A. (2023) · Computers in Human Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.chb.2023.107906 · Cited by 10
El impacto del uso prolongado de pantallas en el desarrollo cognitivo de los estudiantes
Tulcanaza, P. E. E., Guarnizo, T. C., Nieves, J. M. N., Taco, B. N. I., Veas, L. J. V., & Chicaiza, D. C. F. (2024) · South Florida Journal of Development · doi:10.46932/sfjdv5n12-086 · Cited by 7
The Bidirectional Relationships between Social Pressure in Digital Contexts, Depression, and Social Support over Time
Erdem, H. D., Herrero, J., & Urueña, A. (2025) · Psychosocial Intervention · doi:10.5093/pi2025a15 · Cited by 9
“…among researchers in analyzing the impact of new social and communication technologies on users’ psychological and social adjustment (Elhai et al., 2017; Huang, 2010; Kaur et al., 2021; Kim et al., 2009; Munzel et al., 2018; Orben & Przybylski, 2019; Schemer et al., 2021; Vahedi & Saiphoo, 2018).”
Impact of Social Media Use on the Life Satisfaction of Adolescents in South Korea Through Social Support and Social Capital
Choi, D.-H. (2024) · SAGE Open · doi:10.1177/21582440241245010 · Cited by 16
“One side suggests that social media use can facilitate life satisfaction by enhancing social ties and making social connections (Schemer et al., 2021).”
The effect of positive and negative daily social media emotional experiences on older adults’ subjective age: Unveiling the negativity bias in WhatsApp groups
Gazit, T., Bergman, Y. S., Hoffman, Y. S. G., Weissberger, G. H., & Shrira, A. (2025) · New Media & Society · doi:10.1177/14614448241312525 · Cited by 6
“The discussions have centered on whether such a relationship exists, whether it is negative or positive, and whether psychological well-being affects social media emotional experience or vice versa (Amichai-Hamburger and Etgar, 2018; Schemer et al., 2021).”
From Displacement to Integration: An Examination of the Associations between Mobile Information and Communications Technology Use and Daily Time Use
Li, C. (2025) · Social Indicators Research · doi:10.1007/s11205-025-03523-y · Cited by 6
“The changes in free-time activities, either more free time for heavy users or changes in priorities for light users, may indicate a benefit on well-being by replacing the unpleasant ‘old’ medium use (Hall et al., 2019; Schemer et al., 2021 ).”
US State Policies Regarding Social Media: Do Policies Match the Evidence?
Thimm-Kaiser, M., & Keyes, K. M. (2025) · Milbank Quarterly · doi:10.1111/1468-0009.70021 · Cited by 7
Internet risks and challenges among young adults and adolescents: an overview and research prospects / Riesgos y retos de Internet entre jóvenes y adolescentes: una visión general y perspectivas de investigación
Gámez‐Guadix, M., & Machimbarrena, J. M. (2025) · Journal for the Study of Education and Development Infancia y Aprendizaje · doi:10.1177/02103702251358182 · Cited by 9
“Su impacto es particularmente notable entre los ado-lescentes, para quienes las tecnologías digitales han transformado la comunicación, la socializa-ción, la educación e, incluso, la construcción de la identidad (Sage et al., 2021; Schemer et al., 2021; Subrahmanyam & Smahel, 2010).”
Youth digital well-being: The role of digital skills and positive and negative digital outcomes in youth's subjective well-being
Yasmine, D. I., Colombijn, F., van Deursen, A. J. A. M., & van Ingen, E. J. (2025) · Computers in Human Behavior Reports · doi:10.1016/j.chbr.2025.100796 · Cited by 6
A Global Study of the Wellbeing of Adolescent Students During the COVID-19 2020 Lockdown
Skrzypiec, G., Wyra, M., Topcu-Uzer, C., Sikorska, I., Sandhu, D., Romera, E. M., Olenik‐Shemesh, D., Nery, M., Navarro-Rodríguez, C. D., Хломов, К. Д., et al. (2024) · School Mental Health · doi:10.1007/s12310-024-09678-2 · Cited by 9
“However, this study was conducted before the pandemic began, in an era when study findings of the detrimental and beneficial effects of internet use were mixed and inconclusive (Schemer et al., 2020).”
The impact of social media use on the relationship between social isolation and connectedness during COVID-19 in Hong Kong
Rochelle, T. L., & Chan, L.-S. (2024) · Social Indicators Research · doi:10.1007/s11205-024-03389-6 · Cited by 9
“Some studies link use of digital media to reduced wellbeing (Appel et al., 2020; Schemer et al., 2021), others have found that social media use can enhance health and wellbeing, by enhancing social connection and reducing feelings of loneliness and isolation (Dienlin et al., 2017; Husseno-eder,…”
Socioeconomic inequalities in the relationship between internet usage patterns and depressive symptoms: Evidence from a Chinese longitudinal study
Wang, T., Zhang, S., Li, Q., Liu, H., Zhang, S., Jian, W., & Guo, J. (2024) · Journal of Global Health · doi:10.7189/jogh.14.04127 · Cited by 6
“Studies have demonstrated an association between internet use and increased depressive symptoms [7–9], with several finding that internet usage in general and specific online activities such as social networking may be correlated with loneliness, low self-esteem, and depressive symptoms [10–12].”
Background
Sociopsychological Analysis of a Highly Vulnerable Category of Adolescents: Victim-Perpetrators of Cyberbullying from a Wide National Survey of Italian Adolescents
Tintori, A., Ciancimino, G., & Cerbara, L. (2025) · Societies · doi:10.3390/soc15020025 · Cited by 10
The Protective Role of Social-Oriented Digital Media Use in Children’s and Adolescents’ Life Satisfaction During the Covid-19 Pandemic
Marciano, L., Albanese, E., Viswanath, K., & Camerini, A.-L. (2023) · European Journal of Health Communication · doi:10.47368/ejhc.2023.101 · Cited by 6
Why is Social Network Site Advertising Ineffective? Seeking Answers Using a Holistic Theoretical Framework, Multi-Platform Approach
Korgaonkar, P. K., Becerra, E. P., & Londoño, J. C. (2023) · Journal of Promotion Management · doi:10.1080/10496491.2023.2253242 · Cited by 7
What (if anything) is going on? Examining longitudinal associations between social media use and mental ill-health among young peoplePreprint
Kelly, Y. J., Xue, B., Booker, C. L., Sacker, A., Lacey, R. E., Ploubidis, G. B., & Patalay, P. (2022) · medRxiv · doi:10.1101/2022.03.31.22273198 · Cited by 6
“Firstly, most findings are cross sectional and have shown between-group comparisons,(6,8) thus preventing examination of potentially cyclical associations – it is possible that poor mental health in the first instance leads to higher social media use which in turn may lead to more mental health problems.(9,11-14) Seco…”
Background
Digital interaction and active aging: the impact of social media use on physical activity behavior mediated by social capital and self-efficacy
Liu, J., Wang, J., Meng, Z., & Yu, C. (2025) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1580936 · Cited by 7
The impact of internet use on the well-being of rural residents: evidence from formerly impoverished areas in China
Shuai, Y., Li, W., & Huang, F. (2025) · Humanities and Social Sciences Communications · doi:10.1057/s41599-025-05737-4 · Cited by 5
“Internet use may help older adults maintain intergenerational ties, thereby improving their subjective well-being (Li and Zhou, 2021), yet its impact on the well-being of adolescents appears to be limited (Schemer et al., 2021).”
Social Media Use & Well-Being: Investigating Effect Consistency and Symmetry Across Three Time IntervalsPreprint
Verbeij, T., Beyens, I., Keijsers, L., & Valkenburg, P. M. (2023) · doi:10.31234/osf.io/a9ksb · Cited by 5
Psychometric properties of the Italian version of the 6-Item Identity Bubble Reinforcement Scale (IBRS-6)
Lorenzo, A. D., Gesto, C. D., Graziano, F., Calandri, E., Kaakinen, M., Oksanen, A., & Rabaglietti, E. (2026) · Humanities and Social Sciences Communications · doi:10.1057/s41599-026-07130-1 · Cited by 4
“Firstly, the results must be interpreted taking into account the cultural context and the dynamic and rapidly changing characteristics of the internet phenomenon, particularly for this age group (Schemer et al. 2021).”
Quantum-Resistant 1-out-of-N Oblivious Signatures from Lattices
You, J.-S., Liu, Z., Tso, R., Tseng, Y., & Mambo, M. (2022) · Lecture notes in computer science · doi:10.1007/978-3-031-15255-9_9 · Cited by 4
Normalizing Open Science Practice: Understandings, Evaluations, and Implementations of Open Science Practices in the Field of Communication
Perreault, G., & Dienlin, T. (2024) · Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly · doi:10.1177/10776990241262346 · Cited by 4
“Anecdotal evidence shows that ICA Scholars now publish preprints (Verbeij et al., 2021), share data (Utz, 2017), provide code and materials (Schemer et al., 2021), or preregister their studies (Kümpel & Unkel, 2021; Oeldorf-Hirsch & Neubaum, 2023).”
Short-Form Video Applications Usage and Functionally Dependent Adults’ Depressive Symptoms: A Cross-Sectional Study Based on a National Survey
Li, C., & Wang, Y. (2024) · Risk Management and Healthcare Policy · doi:10.2147/rmhp.s491498 · Cited by 4
“54 Similarly, we hypothesized that those who engaged in higher levels of video games would need to allocate individual attentional resources more efficiently to the gaming experience, which in turn attenuates the effect of short-form video usage on depressive symptoms, whereas users who played…”
Digital Media, Suicide, and Self-Injury
Kruzan, K. P., & Whitlock, J. L. (2022) · Cambridge University Press eBooks · doi:10.1017/9781108976237.018 · Cited by 6
From Social Networking Site Use to Subjective Well-Being: The Interpersonal and Intrapersonal Mediating Pathways of Prosocial Behavior among Vocational College Students in China
Hui, B. P. H., Au, A. K. Y., Ng, J. C. K., & Song, X. (2022) · International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health · doi:10.3390/ijerph20010100 · Cited by 3
“Both views have received considerable empirical support [24].”
BackgroundResult
Impact of Privacy Behaviors on Relatedness and Well-Being in SNSs
Chae, H.-C., Kim, G., & Koh, C. E. (2022) · Journal of Computer Information Systems · doi:10.1080/08874417.2022.2052378 · Cited by 3
Positive and negative factors of the influence of new media and the digital environment on ideal and belief education among university students in China
Xu, D., Feng, S., & Huang, Z. (2024) · The Journal of General Psychology · doi:10.1080/00221309.2024.2385105 · Cited by 4
“The negative effects of new media and the Internet include: lack of critical thinking (M ¼ 4.0975, SD ¼ 1.3076); a waste of time (M ¼ 2.2058, SD ¼ 1.0664); dysgraphia (M ¼ 4.0241, SD ¼ 1.3566); disrupted connection to learning (M ¼ 4.0878, SD ¼ 1.3374); students’ laziness (M ¼ 4.0866, SD ¼ 1.3207); and health risks (M…”
Influential
Dynamic Interplay of Online Risk and Resilience in Adolescence (DIORA): a protocol for a 12-month prospective observational study testing the associations among digital activity, affective and cognitive reactions and depression symptoms in a community sample of UK adolescents
Kostyrka‐Allchorne, K., Stoilova, M., Bourgaize, J., Murray, A. L., Azeri, E., Hollis, C. P., Townsend, E., Livingstone, S., & Sonuga-Barke, E. J. S. (2024) · BMJ Open · doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2024-085061 · Cited by 3

Authors: Schemer, C., Masur, P. K., Geiß, S., Müller, P., & Schäfer, S.
Affiliations: Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (DE)
Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (NL)
Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NO)
University of Mannheim (DE)
University of Vienna (AT)
Corresponding author: Schemer, Christian
ORCID: Schemer, Christian
Masur, Philipp K
Geiß, Stefan
Müller, Philipp
Schäfer, Svenja
Venue: Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Published: 2020-12-12
Volume: 26
Issue: 1
Pages: 1-21
ISSN: 1083-6101 (ISSN-L)
DOI: 10.1093/jcmc/zmaa014
OpenAlex: W3112674396
Cited by: 166
References: 57
Citations by year: 2026: 25 · 2025: 27 · 2024: 38 · 2023: 25 · 2022: 36 · 2021: 13 · 2020: 2
FWCI: 25.42
Type: journal article
Language: en
Open access: hybrid
doi.org
Licence: cc-by
creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ (vor)
Locations: Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication (publishedVersion, cc-by)
VU Research Portal (publishedVersion, cc-by)
MADOC (University of Mannheim) (acceptedVersion, cc-by)
Socio-Environmental Systems Modeling (submittedVersion, cc-by)
NORA - Norwegian Open Research Archives (submittedVersion, cc-by)
Data Archiving and Networked Services (DANS) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
Funders: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft
Topics: Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Impact of Technology on Adolescents
Social Sciences › Education › Child Development and Digital Technology
Social Sciences › Communication › Media and Digital Communication
Keywords: internet use, social networking sites, subjective well-being, adolescents, depressive symptoms, life satisfaction, television viewing, self-esteem, between-person effects, within-person change

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The Impact of Internet and Social Media Use on Well-Being: A Longitudinal Analysis of Adolescents Across Nine Years

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