Digital screen time and suicidality during high school: How important is cyberbullying? A mediation analysis using the youth risk behavioral surveillance survey, 2011–2019

Nov 5, 2022Preventive medicine

Digital screen time and suicidal thoughts in high school students: the role of cyberbullying

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Abstract

Elevated digital screen time of 3 hours or more per day is associated with increased suicidal ideations and attempts among adolescents.

40.5% of high school students reported elevated digital screen time.
15.4% of participants experienced cyberbullying victimization.
Cyberbullying mediated 16% of the relationship between digital screen time and feelings of sadness or hopelessness.
The mediation effect was 18% for suicidal ideation and planned suicide attempts, and 26% for past suicide attempts.
Similar mediation effects were found when analyses were stratified by sex.

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Elevated digital screen time (i.e., 2+ hours per day) is associated with suicidal ideations, planning, and attempts during adolescence. Recent studies suggest quality, rather than duration, of digital screen time is most impactful on adolescent mental health. We investigate the role of cyberbullying victimization on the relationship between elevated digital screen time and risk factors for completed suicide. We pooled five years of biennial Youth Risk Behavioral Surveillance (YRBS) survey data (2011-2019). Participants were n = 73,011 high school students in the United States (US). Elevated digital screen time reflected spending 3 h (or more) per day on leisure, digital media. Outcome variables were: (1) feeling sad/hopeless; (2) suicidal ideation; (3) suicidal planning; and (4) suicide attempt. Structural equation models (SEMs) tested the mediating effects of self-reported online bullying victimization (i.e., cyberbullying) on the effect of elevated digital screen time on suicidality. We controlled for age, sex, race/ethnicity, and survey year. Subsample analyses stratified by sex were also conducted. Overall, 40.5% of high school students reported elevated digital screen time and 15.4% reported cyberbullying. Cyberbullying mediated a substantial proportion of the relationship between digital screen time and feeling sad/hopeless (16%), suicidal ideation (18%), planned suicide attempt (18%), and past suicide attempt (26%), among high school students, controlling for covariates. Similar mediating effects were observed in models stratified by sex. Findings reinforce prior research demonstrating that the quality of leisure, digital media strongly influences the relationship between digital screen time and mental health during adolescence. Findings need replication via longitudinal designs.

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