Psychologist: Young people addicted to social media lose focus

Clinical psychologist Sabine Duflo warns that adolescents heavily reliant on social media are losing their ability to concentrate on other activities. She reports seeing teenagers who spend an average of 8.5 hours per day on their phones, with weekday usage around 6 hours and weekend usage escalating to 15 or 16 hours.

This issue comes as a mixed parliamentary committee convenes to discuss banning social media for individuals under 15. Duflo explains that the intensive use of these platforms triggers a cascade of negative effects on young people's cognitive development and mental well-being, including increased violence, self-harm, and attention deficits.

Duflo clarifies that the term "social media" encompasses not only traditional platforms like TikTok and Instagram, which are frequently discussed for their detrimental effects, but also equally harmful online games. Multiplayer games such as Brawl Stars, Fortnite, and Roblox, which are free and accessible, function as social networks. Through these platforms, users can interact with anyone, anywhere, at any time, making them a significant part of the daily lives of many young boys she treats.

She identifies two primary mechanisms through which these platforms negatively affect young people's health and brains: powerful and varied addiction mechanisms. The article, however, was cut short, leaving the full explanation of these mechanisms and their specific impacts on young users incomplete.