Time online, the content young people encounter and the difficulties they report are different measures. These seven papers, published online in 2025 and 2026, examine screen use, mental health, ADHD symptoms and school-based responses, without reducing the evidence to a single screen-time limit.
1. Screen Use and Child and Adolescent Development and Mental Health Outcomes
JAMA Pediatrics, September 2026
DOI: 10.1001/jamapediatrics.2026.4339
A meta-analysis linked screen-based media exposure with poorer outcomes across several academic, emotional and behavioral domains, with differences by screen type and child age. The associations do not establish a single causal effect of “screen time.”
2. Social Media Trap: A Systematic Review of the Content and Pathways That Affect Adolescents’ Mental Health
Journal of Technology in Behavioral Science, March 2025
DOI: 10.1007/s41347-025-00502-5
A review of 32 studies examines links between social-media content and adolescent mental health, highlighting image-related content, cyberbullying and extended use. It shifts attention from minutes online to what young people encounter, without establishing that those exposures caused the reported outcomes.
3. Social Media Made Me Do It: Perceptions of Social Media Influence, Risky Behaviors, and Mental Health Among Adolescents
Social Science Computer Review, April 2025
DOI: 10.1177/08944393251337016
In an online survey of 304 adolescents, perceived social-media influence and fear of missing out were associated with risky behavior, anxiety and depressive symptoms. These self-reports concern perceived influence, not a direct measurement of what platforms caused.
4. The Impact of Screen Time on ADHD Symptoms in Children and Adolescents: A Narrative Review of Treatment Approaches
Clinical Child Psychology and Psychiatry, November 2025
DOI: 10.1177/13591045251399697
A narrative review of 14 studies discusses associations between screen use and ADHD symptoms, including differences between digital activities. It does not establish that screens cause ADHD or that every form of digital engagement has the same effects.
5. Exploring the Relationship of Sleep, Screen Time, and Physical Activity With Deficient Emotional Self-Regulation in Children With and Without ADHD
Journal of Developmental & Behavioral Pediatrics, August 2026
DOI: 10.1097/dbp.0000000000001505
Among 74 children aged 6–10, including 43 ADHD inpatients, sleep problems remained associated with emotional self-regulation difficulties after adjustment. Screen time correlated with those difficulties but was not independently associated in the multivariable models.
6. A Mixed-Methods Investigation of a Mindfulness-Based Intervention on Adolescents’ Internet and Smartphone Use: Exploring the Underlying Mechanism
Journal of Psychologists and Counsellors in Schools, March 2026
DOI: 10.1177/20556365261419843
In a study of 62 tenth-graders in Türkiye, an eight-session mindfulness program was associated with lower questionnaire scores for problematic internet and smartphone use relative to controls. The small study measures reported difficulties, rather than objectively tracked screen minutes.
7. Role of School Nurses in Preventing Digital Addiction and Promoting Health Among School-Age Adolescents
NASN School Nurse, August 2026
DOI: 10.1177/1942602x261482095
This practice-oriented article discusses school nurses’ roles in digital wellness, including assessment, education and collaboration. It is a discussion of professional practice, not a trial demonstrating that a particular school program improves mental health.
These selected papers are not a systematic review or clinical guidance. Publication months refer to first online publication.
All seven papers are included in DeepDyve's LitStream collection. Read them in full with a DeepDyve subscription.