Mendonça Inês, Coelho Franz, Rando Belén, Abreu Ana Maria
Center for Interdisciplinary Research in Health (CIIS), Universidade Católica Portuguesa, 1649-023 Lisbon, Portugal.
Faculty of Health Sciences and Nursing (FCSE), Universidade Católica Portuguesa, 1649-023 Lisbon, Portugal.
Children (Basel). 2025 Apr 3;12(4):460. doi: 10.3390/children12040460.
BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Previous research suggests that social media use can have immediate cognitive effects, raising concerns about its impact on adolescent cognition. This study aimed to examine the short-term cognitive effects of acute social media exposure and screen time habits by comparing cognitive performance in adolescents (13-15 years old) following 30 min of social media interaction versus face-to-face conversation, according to their screen time habits (more or less time spent in front of a screen).
A total of 66 participants were divided into four groups: a social media group who used to spend less than 540 min per week in front of a screen ( = 19, a social media group with a habit of more than 540 min per week of screen time ( = 14), a face-to-face conversation group with a habit of less screen time per week ( = 15), and a face-to-face conversation group who used to spend more time per week in front of a screen ( = 18). Cognitive performance was assessed through attention (D2 Test), working memory (Corsi Blocks), abstract reasoning (Abstract Reasoning Test Battery), and inhibitory control (Go/No-Go Task). Additionally, mental effort was measured using a Visual Analogue Scale.
Contrary to our hypothesis, no significant differences emerged between groups in any cognitive domain or mental effort, with interaction modality and screen time showing no impact on response variables. Also, we found no significant interaction effect between factors. This suggests that a single 30-min session of social media use does not immediately impair cognition, nor does face-to-face interaction enhance it, despite screen time spent per week (when it varies from 135 to 540 min and from more than 540 to 1320 min).
The absence of cognitive effects may be explained by excessive screen time as a key factor in cognitive impact and by the cultural integration of social media, creating a "ceiling effect" that minimizes the impact of short-term exposure and resembles addictive behavior. These findings emphasize the importance of a holistic approach involving families, schools, and governments to address both acute and cumulative social media use in adolescents.
背景/目的：先前的研究表明，使用社交媒体会产生即时的认知影响，这引发了人们对其对青少年认知影响的担忧。本研究旨在通过比较青少年（13 - 15岁）在30分钟社交媒体互动与面对面交流后的认知表现，根据他们的屏幕使用时间习惯（在屏幕前花费时间的多少），来研究急性接触社交媒体和屏幕使用时间习惯的短期认知影响。
总共66名参与者被分为四组：一个每周在屏幕前花费少于540分钟的社交媒体组（n = 19），一个每周屏幕使用时间超过540分钟的社交媒体组（n = 14），一个每周屏幕使用时间较少的面对面交流组（n = 15），以及一个每周在屏幕前花费更多时间的面对面交流组（n = 18）。通过注意力（D2测试）、工作记忆（科西方块）、抽象推理（抽象推理测试电池）和抑制控制（Go/No - Go任务）来评估认知表现。此外，使用视觉模拟量表测量心理努力程度。
与我们的假设相反，在任何认知领域或心理努力程度方面，各组之间均未出现显著差异，互动方式和屏幕使用时间对反应变量均无影响。此外，我们未发现各因素之间存在显著的交互作用。这表明，单次30分钟的社交媒体使用并不会立即损害认知，面对面互动也不会增强认知，无论每周的屏幕使用时间如何（当每周屏幕使用时间在135至540分钟之间以及超过540至1320分钟之间变化时）。
认知影响不存在可能是由于过度的屏幕使用时间是认知影响的关键因素，以及社交媒体的文化融合，产生了一种“天花板效应”，使短期接触的影响最小化，类似于成瘾行为。这些发现强调了家庭、学校和政府采取整体方法来解决青少年急性和累积性社交媒体使用问题的重要性。
