Research exploring social media and its impact on youth well-being is vast and largely mixed, with study results suggesting that social media participation can be both beneficial and harmful. One study, however, explored how social media interaction effects LGBTQ+ youth in a very specific way (Craig, Eaton, McInroy, Leung & Krishnan, 2021). This study proved to be extensive – a large sample size (n = 6,178) of youth aged between 14 and 29 years old made up the study, with over three-quarters identifying with non-heterosexual and/or gender fluid identities.

Using a Social Media Benefits Scale, the study explored the multidimensional benefits social media interaction may have for LGBTQ+ youth, including emotional support and development, general education, entertainment, and identity-specific information. Results established that beneficial elements were present for LGBTQ+ youth, however, they did differ between platforms and social media ‘types’. The study also found that younger youth were more likely to use social media for beneficial factors, compared with their older peers.

This study posed itself as an incredibly insightful and overarching exploration into the topic, in particular with the way that it determined both similarities and differences between various social media platforms and the benefits they may elicit for LGBTQ+ youth. In particular, this study identified the age differences alongside differences in social media benefits.

For example, youth aged 14-18 were significantly less likely to find general educational benefits in social media use, rather they reaped benefits in social media that provided entertainment. They were also the most likely audience to benefit from LGBTQ+ information on social media. It is logical that younger LGBTQ+ youth are seeking out and exploring information regarding their sexual orientations and gender identity, compared to older youth who have since established some understanding regarding these concepts.

This was a trend presented throughout the study, with younger adolescents presenting as more likely to use social media for emotional support and entertainment as well, with evidence that this use of social media decreases as age increased. While there is no data within this study to support the hypothesis, it would seem logical that this may be partially due to LGBTQ+ youth making more offline connections, discovering resources and internalising knowledge as they become older.

Overall, this is an important avenue to investigate, with evidence suggesting that LGBTQ+ youth spend significantly more time online than their peers (Steinke et al., 2017). It is critical to not look at such an article in isolation, however. While this study highlights many of the beneficiaries of social media use within the LGBTQ+ youth population, it does not explore what detrimental components may also impact such participation.

References

Craig, S. L., Eaten, A. D., McInroy, L. B., Leung, V. W. Y., & Krishnan, S. (2021). Can social media participation enhance LGBTQ+ youth well-being? Development of the social media benefits scale. Social Media + Society, 7(1), 1-13. doi: 10.1177/2056305121988931

Steinke, J., Root-Bowman, M., Estabrook, S., Levine, D. S., & Kantor, L. M. (2017). Meeting the needs of sexual and gender minority youth: Formative research on potential digital health interventions. Journal of Adolescent Health, 43, 139-146. doi: 10.1016/j.jadohealth.2016.11.023