Study Says Technology Has Nothing to Do with Mental Health

Technology is always blamed for teens’ mental health problems. A new groundbreaking study showed that tech use won’t cause any mental illness. A new Oxford University study published on Tuesday showed there is no relationship between teens’ technology use and mental health issues.

Does Technology Play a Major Role in Mental Health? 

The University of Oxford conducted the recent research and they examined 30 years of data demonstrating teens’ technology engagement and mental health, including TV watching, using social media and smartphones. But they found a few to no link.

More Than 430,000 teenagers from the UK and the USA participated in the research in which scientists used questionnaires from 1991. They compared participants’ mental health indicators such as emotional problems, depression with watching TV. 

Researchers discovered a slight connection between television and social media use, between 1991 to 2019.

In the same course of time, there was a slight increase in connection between emotional issues and social media use; however, scientists noted in every case that the change was small.

The researchers stated the generally-used argument that social media and mobiles are harmful to teens can’t be shown through the data and research available.

It is often believed that technology is the main reason for mental problems among kids and teens. However, there are researches recommending devices and social media use is harmful to mental health. It is arguable and the data is incomplete for newer technologies.

Children under the age of 5 can spend one hour in front of a screen per day, according to the World Health Organization in order to encourage them to be involved in physical activity. There are many reports related to social media use with increases in depression and suicide.  

In order to understand the link between technology and well-being today, people need to learn the historic data when parents were worried that watching TV for more hours could give their kids square eyes, to bring the significant concerns about modern technologies into focus, said lead author Matti Vuorre, from the Oxford Internet Institute.

Professor Andy Przybylski, a senior author of the research, stated that it is too soon to conclude the relationship between teen’s technology use and mental health and it is too early to make policy or regulation.