The relationship between social media use and self-harming behavior
Summary
In recent years, a great debate has been generated about the impact of social networks on the mental health of children and adolescents, in various areas of life (social, clinical, educational...).
There is a growing body of evidence and journalistic research that focuses not only on the content circulating on platforms, but also on the role of algorithms . Thus, several reports, documentaries and true stories have revealed that the recommendation systems of some large platforms can favor the dissemination of potentially harmful content for minors, including messages related to self-harm, suicide, violence or the idealization or romanticization of emotional suffering . These algorithms tend to reinforce content that generates an intense emotional response, which can expose vulnerable adolescents to watching toxic content on a loop.
This context has also reached the courts. Recently, in the United States, a 19-year-old woman has initiated legal proceedings against companies such as Meta and YouTube, complaining that the design of the platforms and their addictive functions damaged her mental health. According to the lawsuit, the continuous exposure to certain content, combined with reward mechanisms and social validation, would have played a relevant role in the development of depression, self-harming behaviors and suicidal ideation (Ziber, 2026).
The algorithms of some platforms may favor the dissemination of content related to self-harm, suicide, violence or the idealization of emotional suffering.
Along these lines, Taylor Little recounts how, from a very young age, the use of Instagram repeatedly exposed her to content related to self-harm and suicide . According to her, the platform's algorithm progressively recommended images, videos and messages that normalized, aestheticized or detailed these behaviors, especially when she showed interest or emotional vulnerability. According to the girl, this constant viewing contributed to constructing an internal narrative in which suicide appeared as an understandable or even socially validated option (Alter, 2025).
These cases have intensified the debate, but the media noise and the strength of personal stories do not always allow us to distinguish between correlation and causation.
What does science say about the relationship between social media and self-harm?
Understanding how, when and under what conditions social networks can increase the risk of self-harming behaviors requires a scientific perspective, to know not only whether social networks "do harm" or "do good", but also how they interact with the emotional vulnerability inherent in adolescence and what mechanisms can explain why some young people are particularly sensitive to their impact.
Along these lines, a systematic review and meta-analysis by Keled et al. (2020) studies the relationship between the use of social networks and a whole series of related factors, such as connection time (screen time), the type of activity (what is done when online), cognitive and emotional involvement and associated problematic behaviors.
Social networks do not directly cause self-harming behaviors, but they can act as factors that increase risk in certain adolescents and in certain situations.
The authors verify that all these aspects are associated, to a greater or lesser extent, with indicators of depression, anxiety and psychological distress in adolescents, but the data do not allow us to conclude that networks are the cause, or the only cause, of these problems. They also emphasize that more research is needed to observe the effects of the different variables involved, both those related to networks and their use, and the personal variables of the users.
Some research shows that the key factor is not so much the time spent on social media, but rather the type of use and associated emotional experiences (Marchant et al., 2021). This study concludes that cybervictimization (online bullying), exposure to content related to self-harm or suicide, and problematic use of social media are experiences related to the likelihood of engaging in self-harm, and not so much the time spent on it.
What codes do young people use on social media to talk about self-harm?
On the other hand, the review of articles by Odgers & Jensen (2020) highlights that the association between the amount of time adolescents spend with digital technology each day and their well-being is small, and does not allow establishing what causes what. In this context, the authors speculate that social media may tend to act as amplifiers of previous vulnerabilities , such as depression, anxiety, low self-esteem or difficulties in emotional regulation, rather than as independent or causal triggers.
Along these lines, a recent study with Austrian adolescents states that the use of social networks, in general, is not a direct or universal predictor of self-harm, but adolescents who self-harm, when they experience certain experiences on social networks, especially those that generate negative emotions, social comparison or perception of rejection, cause an increase in the intensity of the impulses to self-harm . Therefore, they conclude that social networks can act as a situational trigger, but only in certain contexts and in vulnerable adolescents. (Goreis et al., 2023)
What happens in the brain?: the neurobiological perspective
This view is enriched by other studies such as the one carried out by Stella et al. (2025) with young Catalans, which analyzes how adolescents with a history of self-harm process digital social interactions from a neurobiological point of view .
Using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), researchers observed the brain activity of adolescent girls while they simulated social media interactions, such as receiving positive feedback or "likes." The results indicate that adolescents with a history of self-harming behavior exhibit a differential neural response in regions involved in the reward system, especially in areas related to dopamine processing.
Preventive interventions should go beyond prohibitive messages and invest efforts in digital and emotional education.
These girls, compared to similar girls who do not self-harm, are more sensitive to digital social recognition , that is, for them these types of stimuli (likes) may have a higher reinforcing value than for the rest.
According to the authors, this mechanism could contribute to the short-term emotional relief they obtain through self-harm, but also facilitate the consolidation of maladaptive emotional regulation strategies, such as self-harm (Stella et al., 2025).
Risk and protective factors for self-harm
Invest in digital and emotional education
Overall, these studies indicate that social media does not directly cause self-harming behaviors, but can act as risk factors in certain adolescents and in certain situations.
From this perspective, and although the issue may seem controversial, with current scientific data we can say that preventive interventions should go beyond prohibitive messages and invest efforts in digital and emotional education , which helps adolescents and young people understand the role of social validation, their vulnerability to "likes" and the way algorithms react to their use of them. In other words, helping them develop a healthier relationship with social networks and, of course, reinforcing all the emotional regulation skills that are alternatives to self-harm.
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