The Psychological and Sleep-Related Consequences of Social Media Addiction: A Systematic Review
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Abstract
Background: Problematic or addictive social media use has increasingly been linked to adverse mental-health and sleep outcomes. Depression, anxiety, loneliness, and sleep disturbance are among the most frequently reported correlates, but the magnitude and consistency of these relationships vary across populations and measurement approaches.
Objective: To systematically synthesize evidence regarding the association between social media addiction or problematic social media use and depression,loneliness, and sleep disturbance.
Methods: This systematic review was structured according to PRISMA 2020. PubMed/MEDLINE, Scopus, Web of Science, Embase, and PsycINFO were searched for observational and longitudinal studies assessing problematic or addictive social media use in relation to depression, anxiety, loneliness/social isolation, or sleep disturbance. Studies evaluating only general internet or smartphone addiction without a separable social-media component were excluded. Risk of bias was assessed using domains adapted from the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale and Joanna Briggs Institute tools. Owing to substantial heterogeneity in populations, exposure definitions, instruments, and outcome measures, findings were synthesized narratively.
Results: A total of 1,883 records were identified, of which 518 duplicates were removed. After screening 1,365 titles and abstracts, 171 reports were sought for retrieval; 8 were not retrieved and 163 full-text reports were assessed. Following exclusion of 127 reports, 36 studies were included in the systematic review. Across the evidence base, problematic social media use showed consistent positive associations with depressive and anxiety symptoms. Loneliness and perceived social isolation were also higher among individuals with problematic engagement. Sleep disturbance, delayed sleep onset, poor sleep quality, and nighttime checking behavior were repeatedly associated with problematic use.Associations were generally stronger for dysfunctional or addiction-oriented patterns than for duration of social media use alone.
Conclusion: Problematic and addictive patterns of social media use are consistently associated with depression, anxiety, loneliness, and sleep disturbance. The largely observational evidence does not establish a unidirectional causal relationship, and reverse or bidirectional effects are plausible. Standardized longitudinal and intervention studies using objective digital-use measures are needed.
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