NUBE 2024

The goal of this presentation is to propose a framework for conceptualizing adolescent social media use behavior that relies on a functions-based approach. We will describe an algorithm for eliciting a social media use history that focuses on evaluating function-specific behaviors and interactions and assess for related risk and resilience factors.

Background: 
Social media (SM) use among adolescents soared over the past decade, raising questions and concerns about its impact on youth mental health. While research points to a correlation between this rise and negative mental health outcomes, there is a paucity of literature discussing approaches to screen for SM use and assess for associated risk and resilience factors. The problem with available screening assessments is that they rely on specific knowledge of the applications. The issue with this is that SM applications cycle rapidly, making it difficult to keep up. Previous practices focused on “screen time” as a measure for SM use. However, recently, some researchers have advocated for a more nuanced, multi-dimensional approach that highlights “how” and “why” adolescents use SM. In this poster, we propose a framework for identifying “use types” that satisfies this nuanced model, focusing primarily on the function of SM use, and evaluating risk and resilience factors associated with each use type.

Methods: 
A literature survey was conducted to identify variables of SM use such as type of engagement and type of online interactions, paying particular attention to risk and resilience factors associated with each category of use. We describe a function-based algorithm that attempts to provide direct clinical guidance on how to conduct the SM use segment of the psychiatric interview without requiring extensive knowledge of the applications used by adolescents. To do that, we focused our framework on 5 main SM functions: social networking, image sharing, video sharing, direct messaging, and streaming.

Results: 
When examining the literature, we identified two major parameters describing adolescents' engagement with SM. First, is the type of use, categorized into consumption and contribution. Second, is the type of interactions, divided into public and private. Recognizing these parameters, we created an algorithm that focuses on eliciting SM use history by asking three major questions: “What function are they using? How are they using SM? And Who are adolescents engaging with on SM?”. By combining type of use with type of interactions, we were able to identify four general use types: private consumption, private contribution, public consumption, and public contribution. We then identified risk and resilience factors associated with each use type found in the literature.

Conclusions: SM use has become a fixture in the life of adolescents. Due to the significant role it plays and the implications of its use during this phase of development, it is imperative that child psychiatrists are able to accurately evaluate use and assess for risk and resilience factors associated with it. Using our framework, clinicians can assess the adolescent’s SM use and understand both their risk and resilience factors without relying on prior application knowledge.

Learning Objectives:

Learn how social media consumption and contribution behavior can be elicited and formulated during a psychiatric interview.

Learn how public vs private interactions impact adolescent mental health and how to ask about these interactions in a psychiatric interview.

Develop an assessment of the adolescent’s social media use type and explore possible protective and risk factors.