Can social connections become stressful? Exploring the link between social media use and perceived stress in cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses of 25,053 adults

BACKGROUND: Social media has become a dominant part of daily lives for many, but excessive use may lead to an experience of stress. Only relatively few studies have investigated social media's influence on mental health.

AIMS: We aimed to investigate whether social media use is associated with perceived stress and changes in perceived stress over 18 months.

METHODS: The study population consisted of 25,053 adults (mean age 42.8; 62% women) from the SmartSleep Study. Self-reported frequency of social media use, of 10 specific social media platforms, and of perceived stress (the Perceived Stress Scale 4 item) was obtained at baseline and 18-months follow-up (N = 1745). The associations were evaluated at baseline and follow-up using multiple linear regression models adjusted for potential confounders.

RESULTS: Compared to non-use, high social media use (at least every second hour) was associated with a slightly higher perceived stress level at baseline. No association was found between the frequency of social media use and changes in perceived stress during follow-up. Only small differences in these associations were noted across social media platforms.

CONCLUSIONS: Further studies are needed to comprehensively explore the relationship between excessive social media use and mental health, recognizing different characteristics across social media platforms.