How social media and relationship stress relate to suicidal thoughts in teens
Interpersonal Stress, Social Media, and Risk for Adolescent Suicidal Thoughts and Behaviors
This project links teens' social media interactions and relationship stress to suicidal thoughts and behaviors in 14–17-year-olds.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Pittsburgh at Pittsburgh NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Pittsburgh, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11145161 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
You would join a group of 300 adolescents aged 14–17, with many participants who have recent suicidal thoughts or a past-year suicide attempt. The team will collect real-time social media interactions and track interpersonal stressors as they occur on your devices. They will also measure brain-related social neural markers and physiological responses and do regular clinical check-ins to see how these measures change over time. By combining digital behavior, biological data, and clinical information, the researchers aim to identify what types and timing of online experiences increase risk.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal candidates are adolescents aged 14–17, especially those with suicidal thoughts in the past 3 months or a suicide attempt in the past year, as well as youths with psychiatric disorders but no lifetime history of suicidal thoughts or behaviors.
Not a fit: Children under 14, adults, or teens who do not use social media or who are unwilling to share digital activity or attend study visits are unlikely to benefit from participating.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the work could help identify teens at higher near-term risk and point to more timely, personalized support to prevent suicidal behavior.
How similar studies have performed: Prior research has linked problematic social media use to suicidal thoughts, but combining real-time digital tracking with neural and physiological markers in a longitudinal design is relatively new.
Where this research is happening
Pittsburgh, United States
- University of Pittsburgh at Pittsburgh — Pittsburgh, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Melhem, Nadine M. — University of Pittsburgh at Pittsburgh
- Study coordinator: Melhem, Nadine M.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.