Early initiation and duration of social media use and addiction risk in adolescents

Background

Across Europe, growing concerns about social media use among adolescents have increased public health and policy interest due to their potential health impacts. Although social media addiction has been widely studied, evidence directly informing policy discussions, particularly regarding age at initiation and duration of use, remains limited. This study aimed to examine early initiation and daily duration of social media use as factors associated with social media addiction among high school students.

Methods

This cross-sectional study was conducted between February and April 2025 among high school students in Eskisehir, Türkiye. A total of 858 students were included using cluster sampling. Data were collected through a self-administered questionnaire including sociodemographic characteristics and the Social Media Addiction Scale for Adolescents (SMAS-A). Higher addiction risk was defined based on the upper quartile of SMAS-A scores. Multivariate logistic regression was performed.

Results

Among the participants, the mean age was 15.8 ± 1.1 years, and 563 (65.6%) were female. A dose–response pattern was observed between daily social media use and addiction risk. Compared to students using ≤2 hours per day, those using 3–4 hours had higher odds of addiction (OR: 2.63, 95% CI: 1.55–4.47), while those using ≥5 hours had substantially higher odds (OR: 4.61, 95% CI: 2.73–7.78). Earlier initiation of social media use was also associated with increased addiction risk (OR: 2.52, 95% CI: 1.04–6.09). Female students had higher odds of addiction (OR: 1.97, 95% CI: 1.36–2.86), and use of visual-content and social networking platforms was also associated with higher addiction risk.

Conclusions

Early exposure and prolonged daily use are associated with higher levels of social media addiction. Addressing these modifiable behaviours may be relevant for prevention efforts and could be considered in ongoing discussions on adolescent social media use.

Key messages

• Higher daily use and earlier initiation are linked to increased addiction risk among adolescents, highlighting potential targets for prevention.

• These factors may represent important targets for public health strategies addressing adolescent social media addiction.