A comprehensive new study of more than 10,000 U.S. adolescents sheds light on the widespread social media usage among early teens. The research, published in Academic Pediatrics, provides the first detailed analysis of platform-specific social media use among early adolescents, revealing that 69.5% have at least one social media account.
Platform Usage and Demographics
TikTok emerges as the dominant platform among early teens, with 67.1% of social media users maintaining accounts. YouTube (64.7%) and Instagram (66.0%) follow closely behind.
The study identifies significant gender differences in platform preferences, with female users reporting higher engagement with TikTok (77.7%), Snapchat (66.5%), Instagram (69.6%), and Pinterest (38.3%). Male users show a stronger preference for YouTube (71.7%) and Reddit (18.1%).
The research, conducted through the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study across 21 geographically diverse U.S. sites, finds that 63.8% of participants under age 13 maintain social media accounts despite platform age requirements. These younger users average 3.38 social media accounts each, with TikTok (68.2%) being their most-used platform.
“Our findings have significant public health and policy implications, particularly in informing policies and legislation aimed at more robust age verification measures, minimum age requirements, and the enhancement of parental controls on social media,” researchers noted.
Secret Accounts and Usage Patterns
The study reveals that 6.3% of participants with social media accounts maintain secret profiles hidden from parental knowledge. Users aged 13 and over demonstrate higher engagement, averaging 3.85 accounts compared to 3.38 for under-13 users, and show a greater likelihood of maintaining multiple accounts (88.6% vs 83.2%).
Researchers note potential problematic usage patterns, with 25.3% of users reporting spending significant time thinking about social media apps and 25.2% indicating they use social media to escape problems. The study also found that 28.6% of participants engaged in Multiplayer Videogame Online Chatting.
Among social media users, TikTok ranks as the most-used platform (35.4%), followed by YouTube (21.2%) and Instagram (16.9%). The sample encompasses diverse demographics, with 45.6% of participants from racial/ethnic minority groups, including 19.9% Latino, 15.6% Black, 5.5% Asian, and 3.1% Native American participants.
Methodology and Context
The research analyzes data collected between 2019 and 2021, including the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic. The sample encompasses diverse demographics, with 45.6% of participants from racial/ethnic minority groups. Dr. Jason M. Nagata of the University of California, San Francisco, leads the research team, supported by funding from the National Institutes of Health and the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation.
The findings emerge as legislators consider measures like the federal Protecting Kids on Social Media Act (S.1291) and state-level initiatives addressing age verification and parental controls. The U.S. Surgeon General has recently called for strengthened safety standards and more robust age verification measures for social media platforms.
The research team acknowledges study limitations, including potential recall and social desirability bias due to self-reported data. They note that pandemic conditions may have influenced social media usage patterns, with slight differences observed between age groups in pandemic-era platform engagement.
Read the full study here.
A comprehensive new study of more than 10,000 U.S. adolescents sheds light on the widespread social media usage among early teens. The research, published in Academic Pediatrics, provides the first detailed analysis of platform-specific social media use among early adolescents, revealing that 69.5% have at least one social media account.
Platform Usage and Demographics
TikTok emerges as the dominant platform among early teens, with 67.1% of social media users maintaining accounts. YouTube (64.7%) and Instagram (66.0%) follow closely behind.
The study identifies significant gender differences in platform preferences, with female users reporting higher engagement with TikTok (77.7%), Snapchat (66.5%), Instagram (69.6%), and Pinterest (38.3%). Male users show a stronger preference for YouTube (71.7%) and Reddit (18.1%).
The research, conducted through the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study across 21 geographically diverse U.S. sites, finds that 63.8% of participants under age 13 maintain social media accounts despite platform age requirements. These younger users average 3.38 social media accounts each, with TikTok (68.2%) being their most-used platform.
“Our findings have significant public health and policy implications, particularly in informing policies and legislation aimed at more robust age verification measures, minimum age requirements, and the enhancement of parental controls on social media,” researchers noted.
Secret Accounts and Usage Patterns
The study reveals that 6.3% of participants with social media accounts maintain secret profiles hidden from parental knowledge. Users aged 13 and over demonstrate higher engagement, averaging 3.85 accounts compared to 3.38 for under-13 users, and show a greater likelihood of maintaining multiple accounts (88.6% vs 83.2%).
Researchers note potential problematic usage patterns, with 25.3% of users reporting spending significant time thinking about social media apps and 25.2% indicating they use social media to escape problems. The study also found that 28.6% of participants engaged in Multiplayer Videogame Online Chatting.
Among social media users, TikTok ranks as the most-used platform (35.4%), followed by YouTube (21.2%) and Instagram (16.9%). The sample encompasses diverse demographics, with 45.6% of participants from racial/ethnic minority groups, including 19.9% Latino, 15.6% Black, 5.5% Asian, and 3.1% Native American participants.
Methodology and Context
The research analyzes data collected between 2019 and 2021, including the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic. The sample encompasses diverse demographics, with 45.6% of participants from racial/ethnic minority groups. Dr. Jason M. Nagata of the University of California, San Francisco, leads the research team, supported by funding from the National Institutes of Health and the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation.
The findings emerge as legislators consider measures like the federal Protecting Kids on Social Media Act (S.1291) and state-level initiatives addressing age verification and parental controls. The U.S. Surgeon General has recently called for strengthened safety standards and more robust age verification measures for social media platforms.
The research team acknowledges study limitations, including potential recall and social desirability bias due to self-reported data. They note that pandemic conditions may have influenced social media usage patterns, with slight differences observed between age groups in pandemic-era platform engagement.
Read the full study here.