South Middlesex Times

Teenagers are reconsidering the effects of social media and creating their own strategies to limit its use, according to a study by Rutgers University-New Brunswick. Researchers found that teens are crafting their own "frictions"—defined as moments of intentional pause—to resist social media designs that keep users constantly engaged. Older teens reported using reminder apps, calendars, and checking the time on their phones to control their social media scrolling habits, while reminders from parents were more influential for younger teens.

The research, published in the International Journal of Communication, examined teenage social media usage patterns and analyzed the methods, motivations, and reasons behind teens taking breaks or stopping their use of social media altogether.

“Teenagers’ social media use is often cast as problematic and addictive, and moral panics are a persistent theme,” said Nikhila Natarajan, a doctoral candidate in the Department of Media Studies at the Rutgers School of Communication and Information. "While policymakers lag behind in technology regulation, teenagers are taking the lead to combat this."

Natarajan noted that while broader commentary has focused on how teens use and linger on social media, there is a gap in scholarly research on how teens might be developing strategies to resist "frictionless" design—commonly seen as an endless loop of content on platforms like TikTok—during a crucial developmental period.

Researchers conducted in-depth interviews with 20 teenagers from the United States and Canada. Participants provided insights into three key areas by age: whether they voluntarily cease using social media apps; the methods they employ to stop usage; and their motivations for discontinuing usage.

The study revealed that 13-16-year-olds tend to implement minor adjustments in their media consumption habits to resist apps designed to captivate user attention. Researchers found that over time, teens increasingly understand and actively manage their cognitive processes more effectively. This evolution coincides with their growing capacity to strategize, prioritize, and manage their time efficiently.

“The asymmetries between teens’ developmental stages and social media design are many,” said Natarajan. “The always-on challenge is that teens’ still-maturing regulatory regions of the brain are dealing with twin tensions—an easily aroused reward system navigating social media design that eliminates stopping cues and offers instant but unpredictable gratifications.”

According to Natarajan, several forces influence why teens pause their social media use.

“It is rarely a single experience but more often a set of interconnected ones both online and offline that lead teens to think harder about social media effects and then take actions to self-regulate their use,” she said. “Participants’ responses highlight that they are constantly thinking about how their social media experiences cause both physical and emotional discomfort.”

Previous research indicates that adolescents' planning and organizing skills are not fully developed during ages 13–16.

Importantly, this research highlights how participants come to understand how social media design exacerbates tensions between intentionality versus unintentionality; between time well spent versus time wasted.

Researchers suggested there is an opportunity for parents.

“An effective way for parents to talk to their teens about social media use is to focus on the gaps between teens' prioritizing and organizing skills and the manipulative design of social media platforms,” Natarajan said.

Future research should consider measures other than time spent and frequency of use to understand how teens engage with social media. Participants described using social media when they have "nothing else to do" or are "bored." Comparing habitual versus more intentional uses could be valuable for future studies.

The study was advised by Amy Jordan, a Distinguished Professor of Journalism and Media Studies at Rutgers University.

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