Responses

Social media is neither purely more harmful nor more helpful—it is a double-edged tool whose net impact depends heavily on how it is used, by whom, how much, and in what context. Effects are often small on average, highly heterogeneous, and bidirectional (e.g., poorer mental health can drive more use, and vice versa). Research from surveys, longitudinal studies, experiments, and reviews consistent

It's complicated—neither clearly more harmful nor more helpful overall. Social media's impacts are highly dependent on factors like age, amount and type of use (e.g., active messaging/connecting vs. passive scrolling), content consumed, individual vulnerability, platform design, and cultural context. Effects on average are often small, reciprocal (poor well-being can drive more use, and vice versa