Social media platforms—such as social networks, messaging apps, and blogs—have become an integral part of daily life, offering opportunities for social interaction, information sharing, and emotional support. Although these platforms provide numerous benefits, excessive use of them can lead to addiction, with users exhibiting symptoms comparable to those experienced in substance addiction (i.e., activity salience, mood modification, tolerance, conflict with others, withdrawal symptoms, and relapse ). This risk is particularly concerning during adolescence, a formative period when social media habits are established, potentially setting the stage for addictive behaviors in adulthood. Given that parents are key figures in their children’s socialization, parental involvement—particularly in terms of monitoring and conflict—may influence the development of social media addiction. However, most studies to date are cross-sectional, limiting the understanding of whether these effects persist into adulthood. Given the evolving nature of social media, it is important to study the long-term impact of social media use.
In a 15-year longitudinal study described in an article published in the Canadian Journal of Behavioral Science / Revue Canadienne des sciences du comportement, Demers et al. address this gap by examining the relationships between parental monitoring and conflicts during adolescence, chat site use by 15-year-olds, the social media involvement of 25-year-olds, and social media addiction of 30-year-olds. As part of a broader longitudinal project investigating various aspects of social development from early adolescence to adulthood, data were collected from 322 participants through questionnaires at three key developmental stages: adolescence (age 15 years), emerging adulthood (age 25 years), and adulthood (age 30 years).
The results revealed that lower levels of parental monitoring when participants were 15 years old are associated with greater chat site use, which predicts increased social media involvement at age 25 years and, ultimately, social media addiction at age 30 years. This suggests that early online behaviors, influenced by parental factors, have lasting effects on social media habits. In contrast, parent–adolescent conflicts were directly associated with social media addiction at age 30 years but were not mediated by early chat site use or later social media involvement. These findings suggest that other mechanisms may be driving this relationship. Overall, the results underscore the continuity of social media use from adolescence through adulthood and highlight the role of early parental relationships in predicting social media addiction. Although the model explains only a small portion of the variance in adult social media addiction, it provides important insights into the developmental trajectory of this issue.
This study is one of the first to provide a longitudinal perspective on social media addiction, uniquely contributing to the understanding of the long-term impact of parental influence on online behavior. The findings suggest that rather than focusing solely on restrictive rules, parents should prioritize open communication with adolescents about social media use. This could be a more effective approach to preventing problematic behaviors. As social media become even more pervasive, these insights highlight the need for ongoing research into the long-term effects of social media use and offer valuable guidance for developing interventions aimed at reducing the risk of addiction.