(PS8-76) Investigating the Association Between Social Media Privacy Settings and Account Ownership on Problematic Internet Use in Adolescents

Abstract Text: Problematic internet use (PIU) is defined as excessive internet use that interferes with functioning; it has been associated with internalizing symptoms, sleep concerns, and social and academic impairment (Fineberg et al., 2022; Moreno et al., 2022). For adolescents, problematic social media use is particularly relevant (Montag et al., 2024). In particular, transgender, nonbinary, and gender-diverse adolescents report higher PIU scores, which may be linked to harmful online social interactions (Allen et al., 2024). By being selective about others’ access to an individual’s social media, privacy settings may mitigate some risk. However, the impact of privacy settings (e.g., public vs. private accounts) on problematic internet use is understudied. As such, this study examined the association between privacy settings and PIU in adolescents (N=2206), using data from the Technology & Adolescent Mental Wellness (TAM) Data Consortium of the University of Wisconsin-Madison. In addition, we aimed to assess whether these relationships differ for women and gender-diverse individuals. Participants were 48.2% male, 49.9% female, and 1.7% gender diverse. The sample was 47.0% white, 21.5% Black, 16.5% Hispanic/Latino, 5.9% Asian, 4.0% multiracial, 2.5% Indigenous, and 1.2% other identified race. The average age of participants was 15.91 years old (SD = 1.80). Through an online survey, adolescents reported on PIU with the PRIUSS-3 Scale and endorsed the types of social media accounts they have, as well as their privacy settings (categorized as Public, Semi-Private, Private, or No Account) across seven platforms: Discord, Facebook, Instagram, Reddit, Twitter (now X), Snapchat, and TikTok. Gender-diverse individuals (M = 3.18, SD = 2.05) and women (M = 2.90, SD = 2.42) reported higher PIU scores compared to men (M = 2.38; SD = 2.38; p < .05). There were no significant differences in PIU between women and gender-diverse individuals (p > .05). There were no significant differences in PIU across different platforms (p > .05). Findings showed that, across all platforms, individuals without an account had significantly lower PIU than those with an account (ps < .05), but for Facebook, this association became non-significant after adjusting for age and gender (p = .07). However, among active users, privacy settings were not significantly associated with PIU (ps > .05) after adjusting for age and gender. These results have important implications for clinical practice, particularly for women and gender-diverse individuals, who may be at higher risk of PIU. These findings suggest that account ownership is correlated with increased PIU, while privacy settings generally show no significant relationship. While privacy settings may not strongly influence PIU, clinicians working with teenagers experiencing PIU could explore whether reducing social media use is beneficial, and identify ways to support healthier social media engagement in all clients, and among women and gender-diverse individuals, in particular.