上社交媒体时间太长，易患抑郁症

青少年的自杀率已经达到了2000年以来的最高水平。本周一发布的一份新研究表示，在社交媒体上花费过多时间可能与此有关。

这份在《美国医学会小儿科期刊》（JAMA Pediatrics）发表的研究发现，在社交媒体或电视上花费过多时间的青少年，其抑郁倾向将显著增强。

这项持续六年的研究追踪了蒙特利尔超过3,800名学生，请他们（在课堂上）记录每天用来看电视、浏览社交媒体和玩电子游戏的时间。这一调查还要求他们评估自己孤独和悲伤等抑郁症状的程度。

研究发现，仅仅比普通水平多出一个小时的社交媒体互动就会导致抑郁程度的显著增加。（值得一提的是，研究人员没有找到抑郁迹象和电子游戏之间的关系。）

报告指出：“我们发现社交媒体与青少年抑郁之间存在关联。基于向上社会比较，不断接触理想化的形象会降低青少年的自尊心，引发抑郁，并随着时间的推移加重抑郁。此外，抑郁的社交媒体重度用户似乎会因为使用时间过长而受到更大的负面影响，这可能是由于他们所选择的信息的特质。”

之前的几项研究已经表明了社交媒体和抑郁之间的联系，不过这似乎是第一项专门针对青少年的长期研究。尽管《美国医学会小儿科期刊》的研究并未将屏幕使用时间与自杀案件的增加挂钩，但作者的确指出，青少年时期的抑郁与他们的自杀行为存在关联。

作者承认，这项研究存在局限性，例如没有确定社交媒体的类型，以及哪类电视节目会加剧抑郁症状。然而，他们指出：“需要对青少年使用社交媒体和观看电视做出规定，避免随着时间推移导致抑郁加重并减少已有症状的恶化。”（财富中文网）

译者：严匡正

Teen suicide rates are at their highest level since 2000. And a new study released Monday says too much time on social media could be contributing to that.

A study published in the journal JAMA Pediatrics found that the teens who spend too much time on social media or watching television become notably more depressed.

The six-year study tracked over 3,800 students in Montreal, asking them to track (in class) both how much time per day they had spend watching TV, browsing social media and playing video games. As part of the same survey, they were asked to measure their level of depressive symptoms, such as loneliness and sadness.

An increase of as little as one hour of social media interaction from normal levels would result in a measurable increase in depression, the study found. (Researchers found no correlation, it’s worth noting, between signs of depression and video games.)

“We found an association between social media and depression in adolescence,” reads the report. “Based on the upward social comparison, it may be that repeated exposure to idealized images lowers adolescents’ self-esteem, triggers depression, and enhances depression over time. Furthermore, heavier users of social media with depression appear to be more negatively affected by their time spent on social media, potentially by the nature of information that they select.”

Several previous studies have linked social media and depression, but this is seemingly the first long-term one to focus exclusively on teens. While the JAMA study did not tie screen time to increased suicides, they did note that depression during adolescence has been linked to teens taking their own lives.

The authors acknowledge their study has limitations, such as not determining which types of social media and which genres of television exacerbate depressive symptoms. However, they note, “adolescents’ social media and television use should be regulated to prevent the development of depression and to reduce exacerbation of existing symptoms over time.”