Problematic social media use in adolescents: A bibliometric analysis

Problematic social media use (PSMU) among adolescents has emerged as a growing global concern due to its documented impact on mental health. This study provides a bibliometric analysis of research trends on adolescent PSMU by examining publications indexed in the Scopus database. Articles were mapped based on year of publication, country of origin, and associated psychological constructs. Using VOSviewer software, the study employed co-occurrence analysis to visualize relationships among recurring topics and keywords. The findings reveal a marked annual increase in publications on adolescent PSMU, with the United Kingdom and the United States leading in scholarly output. Prominent thematic trends include depression, mental health, well-being, healthy behaviors, addictive behaviors, anxiety, sleep disturbances, social support, and loneliness. These topics are clustered around both internal factors (e.g., self, emotion, cognition, personality) and external factors (e.g., peers, parents, family, social context, attachment). Frequently used methodological keywords include clinical studies, cross-sectional studies, controlled studies, and surveys. The implications of this analysis underscore its value as a reference point for future empirical investigations in the field.