Adolescent life satisfaction and social media use: gender differences in an international dataset.

 

Among girls worldwide, non-users and light users of social media were more satisfied with their lives than heavy users.

Key Insights 

Although many studies have documented links between heavy social media use and poor mental health, fewer studies have explored associations with positive well-being, especially in international datasets. In 2022, the OECD’s PISA survey, conducted in 47 countries, asked over 270,000 15- to 16-year-olds how many hours a day they spent using social media and how satisfied they were with their lives. Among girls, mean life satisfaction was highest among light users of social media (less than an hour a day) and declined with further hours of use. Among boys, this pattern held only in Western Europe and English-speaking countries. The mean differences obscure a notable pattern, especially among boys. Compared to light users, a larger percentage of the heaviest users (7+ hours a day) had both the highest level of life satisfaction (10) and the lowest levels (0–4). The same was true for non-users of social media, with higher levels of both very high and low life satisfaction. Thus, there is more variation in life satisfaction among non-users and heavy users of social media compared to light or moderate users. Among girls in most regions, non-users of social media were the most likely to report complete satisfaction with their lives, although in some regions, heavy users were also more likely to report complete satisfaction than moderate users.

World Happiness Report 2026 - Chapter 5 - Adolescent life satisfaction and social media use: gender differences in an international dataset.