What topics does this cannabis study cover?

This study covers research on: Addiction, Mental Health.

Where was this research published?

Published in Journal of adolescence on June 8, 2026.

Social media problems linked to teen cannabis and substance use

Problematic Social Media Use Profiles and Adolescent Substance Use Across Countries: A Latent Class Analysis With Multilevel Models.

Journal of adolescence • June 8, 2026 • Moderately Relevant

🤖

AI Summary

This study examined how problematic social media use (PSMU) relates to adolescent substance use, including cannabis, across 39 countries with nearly 158,000 teenagers. Researchers identified five distinct patterns of PSMU ranging from non-problematic to highly-problematic use, finding that these patterns vary significantly across different countries and regions rather than following simple geographic or economic divides. The research reveals that adolescents with problematic social media habits are at elevated risk for multiple substance use behaviors.

The strongest link exists between highly-problematic social media use and cannabis use, smoking, and alcohol consumption. Specifically, teenagers classified as "highly-problematic users" (the most severe 2.45% of the sample) showed the strongest associations with all three substance use outcomes, while those with regulation-failure patterns (25.16% of adolescents) showed weaker but still notable associations. This suggests that the intensity and type of social media problem matters—preoccupied users, conflictual-compulsive users, and highly-problematic users all showed elevated substance use risk.

These findings emphasize that one-size-fits-all prevention programs are unlikely to work effectively. Instead, interventions should target the specific patterns of problematic social media use that adolescents display, as different patterns carry different levels of risk for cannabis and other substance use. The cross-national variations suggest that culturally-tailored approaches may be necessary, recognizing that adolescent social media use patterns and their consequences differ meaningfully across countries.

📄 Original Abstract

While substantial evidence suggests a significant association between problematic social media use (PSMU) and adolescent substance use, the complex nature of PSMU and its cross-national variations remain unclear. This study aimed to identify distinct patterns of PSMU, compare their prevalence across countries, and examine the associations between these patterns and adolescent substance use. This study analyzed a representative adolescent sample (N = 157,717) from 39 countries, utilizing data from the 2017-2018 Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) survey. Latent class analysis (LCA) was conducted to identify different patterns of PSMU. Multilevel logistic regression models were then used to investigate the associations between these identified PSMU patterns and adolescent substance use, specifically focusing on smoking, drunkenness, and cannabis use. Five distinct patterns of PSMU were identified: Non-problematic users (52.60%), Preoccupation-driven users (8.42%), conflictual-compulsive users (11.37%), regulation-failure users (25.16%), and highly-problematic users (2.45%). The distribution of PSMU patterns varied across countries and regions, suggesting cross-national heterogeneity rather than a clear geographical or economic gradient. Consistent patterns of association were found between adolescent PSMU and substance use. Highly-Problematic Users showed the strongest associations with smoking, drunkenness, and cannabis use, followed by conflictual-compulsive users and preoccupation-driven users, while regulation-failure users exhibited the weakest association. These findings underscore the importance of developing tailored interventions for adolescent PSMU that are based on distinct patterns. Furthermore, special attention should be given to the diverse associations of these PSMU patterns with adolescent substance use.