Maartje Boer

SUMMARY AND DISCUSSION 311 9 likes under a photo or video they uploaded. Experimental research testing the effect of such changes on preventing or reducing SMU problems is considered promising. Identifying (Adolescents Engaging in) Healthy and Unhealthy SMU A recurring question among scholars as well as parents, teachers, and policymakers, is what constitutes ‘unhealthy SMU’, that is, harmful SMU (Griffiths & Kuss, 2011; Orben, 2020b). For example, several studies have attempted to answer the question how much screen time is detrimental to adolescents (Przybylski & Weinstein, 2017; Twenge, Martin, et al., 2018). However, as discussed earlier, unhealthy media behaviors may be indicated by SMU problems, rather than by adolescents’ intensity of SMU (Key finding 2, Chapters 4-6, 8). Other SMU dimensions that are considered unhealthy are, for example, becoming a victim of online bullying or sexual harassment, as well as exposure to fake news, complot theories, and promotion of dangerous behaviors, such as eating disorders and self-mutilation (O’Keeffe et al., 2011; Underwood & Ehrenreich, 2017; Valkenburg & Peter, 2011; Van Huijstee et al., 2021). Adolescents who use social media intensively may not necessarily be involved in such adverse online behaviors. For example, our findings showed that, while controlling for SMU problems, increased SMU intensity was not associated with increased cybervictimization one year later (Chapter 6). Social media also facilitate activities that could be favorable to adolescents. As mentioned earlier, social media allow adolescents to form, maintain, and enhance new or existing friendships (Valkenburg & Peter, 2011; Verduyn et al., 2017). Furthermore, adolescents can experience entertainment on social media, for example by viewing uplifting videos with humorous content (Valkenburg, Van Driel, et al., 2021). In addition, social media allow adolescents to disclose their personal narratives and to receive feedback on these from peers, which are important for their individual development during adolescence (Granic et al., 2020; Valkenburg & Peter, 2011). To gain more insight into healthy as well as unhealthy SMU, it would be particularly valuable for future research to explore (the prevalence of) patterns of specific beneficial as well as harmful online experiences as outlined above, instead of focusing the intensity of SMU activities (i.e., ‘screen time’). A next