Problematic Social Media Use and Mental Health: The Mediating Role of Mindfulness

Problematic social media use is associated with adolescents’ mental health, yet mechanisms remain underexplored. This study tested whether dispositional mindfulness mediates associations between problematic social media use and symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress. In a school-based sample of 892 students aged 10–14 years in Switzerland, participants completed an anonymous online classroom survey. Problematic social media use, mindfulness, and symptoms of depression, anxiety and stress were examined using structural equation modeling with robust maximum likelihood estimation and cluster-robust inference for nested data structure. Model fit was acceptable (CFI = 0.921; RMSEA = 0.052). PSMU predicted lower mindfulness (β = −0.50, p < 0.001), and mindfulness was negatively related to depression (β = −0.54), anxiety (β = −0.60), and stress (β = −0.63; all ps < 0.001). Indirect effects of PSMU via mindfulness were significant for all outcomes (β = 0.27–0.32, ps < 0.001). Direct effects of PSMU remained for anxiety (β = 0.18, p < 0.001) and stress (β = 0.14, p = 0.002) but not depression (β = 0.07, p = 0.161). Overall, findings suggest mindfulness might be an important pathway linking dysregulated social media engagement to adolescent distress. Longitudinal and experimental research is needed to clarify temporal ordering.