Understanding Adolescent Social Media Use and Mental Well-being
Official title: Mapping Adolescent Social Media Experiences and Mental Health Across Time, Context, and Race and Ethnicity
Funded at Texas A&m Agrilife Research · NIH-11140400 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project looks at how social media use connects with the mental health of teenagers from different backgrounds over time.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Texas A&m Agrilife Research NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (College Station, UNITED STATES) |
| Project start | August 1, 2024 |
| Project end | May 31, 2029 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $728,754 |
| NIH project number | 5R01MH136979-02 |
| Project ID | NIH-11140400 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates are adolescents aged 12-20 and their primary caregivers who are willing to participate in a longitudinal data collection involving daily check-ins and phone screen monitoring.
✕Less likely to help
Patients not in the 12-20 age range or those unwilling to share detailed social media usage data may not directly benefit from this specific research opportunity.
What this research studies
We want to understand why mental health challenges in teenagers have increased alongside social media use, even though the connection isn't fully clear. Our approach involves following 250 teenagers and their parents over time, including those from various racial and ethnic groups. We will collect information about their social media habits and mental health multiple times a day, even capturing screenshots of their phone screens to see what content they are exposed to. This helps us get a real-time picture of how social media and mental health interact in their daily lives.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could help us better understand how social media affects young people's mental health, leading to better support and guidance for adolescents and their families.
How similar studies have gone: While previous studies have explored aspects of social media and mental health, this project offers a novel, in-depth longitudinal approach with detailed content capture, addressing gaps in existing research.
Where this research is happening
-
Texas A&m Agrilife Research
College Station, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Wang, Jun — Texas A&m Agrilife Research
- Study coordinator: Wang, Jun
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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.