UC Irvine

Adolescents’ rising depressive and anxiety symptoms paired with near constant use of mobile technologies, and more recently social media, has triggered concerns around this relation and synchronous trend. Yet, evidence has been limited to warrant causal effects and most prior research has examined these factors in isolation. Given that multiple factors are likely to determine both adolescents’ mental health and how they interface with technology ecosystems, there is a need for a broader understanding of how the interactions influence outcomes during this developmental period. This study utilizes data from a recent national sample of early adolescents (N = 11,875) to examine multilevel correlates of internalizing behaviors through the lens of the digital age. Analyses and interpretations are framed around a Social Ecological Framework (SEF) to evaluate and compare associations of factors across the tiered domains of the framework. These include individual factors (e.g. screen time, cognitive functioning), family factors (e.g. family conflict and parental monitoring), social factors (e.g. peer relationships), and community-level factors (e.g. neighborhood safety). Results indicate small positive associations between screen time and internalizing problem behaviors among early adolescents, yet social ecological factors such as family conflict, and neighborhood safety yielding stronger associations with internalizing behaviors. Adolescent sex and racial/ethnic difference also pose an important role in the association between screen time and mental health. The findings suggest that multiple social ecological factors beyond technology use may influence internalizing behaviors to a greater extent during early adolescence.