How do online platforms affect the health of minors?

Children’s use of online platforms, and social media in particular, has become a major concern in recent years. For parents, educators and policymakers alike, the uncertainty about how this may affect them in the short and long term is worrying, and ideas for how to overcome potential adverse consequences range widely. 

As part of the JRC, ECAT’s role is to provide scientific and technical evidence to policymakers. Specifically, the team works on investigations and research for the implementation of the Digital Services Act (DSA), where minor protection is a key priority. All platforms must ensure a high level of privacy, safety and security for minors using their services, and those defined as very large online platforms and search engines (VLOPs and VLOSEs) also need to carry out risk assessments which include a focus on risks of negative effects to the rights of the child and the protection of minors. Among the requests for information and proceedings opened against VLOPs so far, several include a focus on risks to the health of minors. 

It is therefore essential to understand the latest research relating to the impact of online platforms on minors. For this purpose, ECAT hosted two online roundtables in the autumn of 2024 with top researchers to share their insights on this topic. Today, a summary of the discussions is being published. It addresses depression and anxiety; self-harm; body image and eating disorders; problematic social media use; vision; brain development; alcohol abuse; and sleep. It also includes a summary of the recommendations made by experts at the event, for platforms, policymakers, parents and educators. 

Read the report here

Across JRC teams, understanding how the online world impacts children is a priority. Find an explainer based on recent work here.

ECAT continuously engages expert researchers to deepen our knowledge of the societal impact of online platforms and stay informed of cutting-edge research. If you would like to be receive quarterly updates on ECAT’s work, including insights from researchers in the wider community, sign up to our newsletter here.