Exploring relationships between social media use, online exposure to drug-related content, and youth substance use in real time: a pilot ecological momentary assessment study in a clinical sample of adolescents and young adults
IntroductionRising rates of adolescent overdose deaths attributed to counterfeit prescription drugs purchased using social media have drawn national attention to how these platforms might influence substance use. Research suggests a significant relationship exists between exposure to substance-relat...
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2024-06-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/frcha.2024.1369810/full |
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| author | Meredith Gansner Meredith Gansner Anna Katharine Horton Rasika Singh Zev Schuman-Olivier |
| author_facet | Meredith Gansner Meredith Gansner Anna Katharine Horton Rasika Singh Zev Schuman-Olivier |
| author_sort | Meredith Gansner |
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| description | IntroductionRising rates of adolescent overdose deaths attributed to counterfeit prescription drugs purchased using social media have drawn national attention to how these platforms might influence substance use. Research suggests a significant relationship exists between exposure to substance-related social media content and use of drugs and alcohol, but most studies are cross-sectional and limited by recall bias. This study used an ecological momentary assessment (EMA) protocol to collect longitudinal data on social media use and online drug-related exposures associated with youth substance use.MethodsParticipants, aged 12–23, receiving mental health treatment from a U.S. community-based hospital, joined a six-week, smartphone-based EMA protocol. Each day, participants completed a modified CRAFFT screen for daily substance use and a survey on substance-related online content exposure, and input data from their smartphone screen time reports. Analyses employed mixed effects logistic regression models to explore relationships between substance-related online exposures, substance and social media use.ResultsData was obtained from 25 youth, predominantly white non-Hispanic/Latinx (56.0%) and female (64.0%). Participants had significantly higher odds of substance use on days when exposed to substance-related digital content posted by peers (OR: 19.6). They were also more likely to report these exposures (OR: 7.7) and use substances (OR: 29.6) on days when Snapchat was one of their most frequently used smartphone applications.DiscussionOur results support existing concerns about specific social media platforms being potential mediators of youth substance use. Future EMA studies in larger cohorts should explore the role of social media platforms in substance procurement. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-b4a1f626d428407db10809583694f71a |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2813-4540 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-06-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
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| series | Frontiers in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry |
| spelling | doaj-art-b4a1f626d428407db10809583694f71a2025-01-20T15:13:50ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry2813-45402024-06-01310.3389/frcha.2024.13698101369810Exploring relationships between social media use, online exposure to drug-related content, and youth substance use in real time: a pilot ecological momentary assessment study in a clinical sample of adolescents and young adultsMeredith Gansner0Meredith Gansner1Anna Katharine Horton2Rasika Singh3Zev Schuman-Olivier4Department of Psychiatry, Cambridge Health Alliance, Cambridge, MA, United StatesDepartment of Psychiatry, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA, United StatesDepartment of Psychiatry, Cambridge Health Alliance, Cambridge, MA, United StatesDepartment of Psychiatry, Cambridge Health Alliance, Cambridge, MA, United StatesDepartment of Psychiatry, Cambridge Health Alliance, Cambridge, MA, United StatesIntroductionRising rates of adolescent overdose deaths attributed to counterfeit prescription drugs purchased using social media have drawn national attention to how these platforms might influence substance use. Research suggests a significant relationship exists between exposure to substance-related social media content and use of drugs and alcohol, but most studies are cross-sectional and limited by recall bias. This study used an ecological momentary assessment (EMA) protocol to collect longitudinal data on social media use and online drug-related exposures associated with youth substance use.MethodsParticipants, aged 12–23, receiving mental health treatment from a U.S. community-based hospital, joined a six-week, smartphone-based EMA protocol. Each day, participants completed a modified CRAFFT screen for daily substance use and a survey on substance-related online content exposure, and input data from their smartphone screen time reports. Analyses employed mixed effects logistic regression models to explore relationships between substance-related online exposures, substance and social media use.ResultsData was obtained from 25 youth, predominantly white non-Hispanic/Latinx (56.0%) and female (64.0%). Participants had significantly higher odds of substance use on days when exposed to substance-related digital content posted by peers (OR: 19.6). They were also more likely to report these exposures (OR: 7.7) and use substances (OR: 29.6) on days when Snapchat was one of their most frequently used smartphone applications.DiscussionOur results support existing concerns about specific social media platforms being potential mediators of youth substance use. Future EMA studies in larger cohorts should explore the role of social media platforms in substance procurement.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/frcha.2024.1369810/fullsocial mediaadolescentsubstance useecological momentary assessmentsmartphone |
| spellingShingle | Meredith Gansner Meredith Gansner Anna Katharine Horton Rasika Singh Zev Schuman-Olivier Exploring relationships between social media use, online exposure to drug-related content, and youth substance use in real time: a pilot ecological momentary assessment study in a clinical sample of adolescents and young adults Frontiers in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry social media adolescent substance use ecological momentary assessment smartphone |
| title | Exploring relationships between social media use, online exposure to drug-related content, and youth substance use in real time: a pilot ecological momentary assessment study in a clinical sample of adolescents and young adults |
| title_full | Exploring relationships between social media use, online exposure to drug-related content, and youth substance use in real time: a pilot ecological momentary assessment study in a clinical sample of adolescents and young adults |
| title_fullStr | Exploring relationships between social media use, online exposure to drug-related content, and youth substance use in real time: a pilot ecological momentary assessment study in a clinical sample of adolescents and young adults |
| title_full_unstemmed | Exploring relationships between social media use, online exposure to drug-related content, and youth substance use in real time: a pilot ecological momentary assessment study in a clinical sample of adolescents and young adults |
| title_short | Exploring relationships between social media use, online exposure to drug-related content, and youth substance use in real time: a pilot ecological momentary assessment study in a clinical sample of adolescents and young adults |
| title_sort | exploring relationships between social media use online exposure to drug related content and youth substance use in real time a pilot ecological momentary assessment study in a clinical sample of adolescents and young adults |
| topic | social media adolescent substance use ecological momentary assessment smartphone |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/frcha.2024.1369810/full |
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