For this session we are delighted to welcome Dr. Lizzy Winstone to share her knowledge and insights into some of the implications of social media use amongst young people. Lizzy will also be answering your questions in a session facilitated by Jan Forshaw, Head of Education at Coram Life Education. Lizzy is a Senior Research Associate in Epidemiology at the University of Bristol with expertise in young people’s mental health and wellbeing, social media, social connectedness and public mental health.

Social media has become a mainstay in our modern lives, but it is still a relatively recent phenomenon and is evolving at pace. The emerging evidence base concerning its benefits and consequences is mixed and highly nuanced, which may well contribute to the formation of myths and moral panic often conveyed in the media.

This session aims introduce some of the big debates in the field of social media effects amongst young people and to unravel some of its complexities in relation to digital stress and mental wellbeing. Using the Education for a Connected World framework to ground the discussion, this session will provide an overview of the evidence-base in relation to the pertinent strands of the framework in relation to child & adolescent mental health.

By having a better understanding of the nuanced nature of social media use, teachers will be better equipped to support and guide young people in making healthy choices around their on-line interactions.

Key Takeaways

• Have a greater appreciation of the context & debates around young people’s social media use
• Take a deep dive into the relevant strands of the Education for a Connected World associated with digital stress and mental wellbeing
• Highlight some groups of young people who may be particularly vulnerable to risks attached to social media use

Resources

ACAMH video abstracts

• 8 min video abstract with Lizzy Winstone on Adolescent social media user types and their mental health and the full Open Access paper from JCPP Advances
• 5 min video abstract from Ahuti Das‐Friebel on the JCPP paper ‘Bedtime social media use, sleep, and affective wellbeing in young adults: an experience sampling study’.

ACAMH Podcast

• 17 min podcast with Lizzy Winstone on Social Media Use in Adolescence: User Types and Mental Health

ACAMH talks

• Prof. William Pickett, Queen’s University in Canada, on ‘Social Media Use and Cyberbullying: an international analysis’
• Dr. Amy Orben, College Research Fellow, Emmanuel College, University of Cambridge on How digital technologies affect adolescent psychological well-being and mental health

ACAMH Research Digests. A selection of our journal papers in easy to digest 2 minute reads;

• Are social networking sites contributing to depression and anxiety symptoms in young people?
• Online self-harm content might provide peer support to young people
• How research on cyberbullying has developed

Papers with contributions from Lizzy Winstone;

• Social media use and social connectedness among adolescents in the United Kingdom Lizzy Winstone, et al. BMC Public Health. 24/09/2021
• Is social media screen time really associated with poor adolescent mental health? Amber E Barthorpe, et al. Journal of Affective Disorders. 01/09/2020
• Types of social media use and digital stress in early adolescence Lizzy Winstone, et al. Journal of Early Adolescence. 25/05/2022

Other FREE Events for teachers can be found at our Teacher Hub. This brings together the resources on our website that is most relevant, and useful, for teachers to use.

About the Speakers

Lizzy Winstone. My mixed methods research focuses on how young people engage with their peers, family and the wider public through social media, and whether this is determined by, or has an impact on their mental health. I am exploring whether it is ‘healthier’ (in terms of self-harm, depression, anxiety and well-being) to use social media passively compared to using it for communicating with friends or to share content and express one’s identity. I am also focusing on how social media use more generally predicts how connected young people feel to their peers, family and school.

Before starting my PhD I worked for several years as a survey methodologist for the European Social Survey, a cross-sectional general attitudes survey conducted every two years in more than 20 countries. Based at City University London, I specialised in questionnaire design, (cross-national) equivalence, survey non-response and survey project management. I have also previously worked in local authority public health teams as a data analyst, researcher and strategist, specialising in Joint Strategic Needs Assessments of local populations. (Bio and Image from University of Bristol)

Coram Life Education is the leading provider of relationships, health, wellbeing, and drugs education to almost half a million children across the UK, delivered under the strapline ‘Helping Children Make Healthy Choices’. Trained Educators use evidence-based, interactive, creative methods and resources to stimulate curiosity and imagination amongst children in 1 in 10 English and Scottish primary schools (2,041 schools).

Our memorable life skills sessions are currently delivered as ‘Life Base’ in school or as ‘SCARF Live Online‘ sessions via Zoom. Coram Life Education takes a three strand approach addressing children’s knowledge, skills and attitudes, and programmes are aligned with the National Curriculum (Citizenship, PSHE Education), covering all Key Stages. Coram Life Education helps schools meet their statutory requirements for Relationships and Health Education, children’s Spiritual, Moral, Social and Cultural development, and Ofsted inspection criteria for personal development, behaviour and welfare. Coram Life Education’s programmes are also aligned with Scotland’s Curriculum for Excellence. Recognising the role of the community and home life in influencing children’s choices, we design our programme with schools and deliver special sessions and assemblies for parents and carers to amplify our effectiveness.