Problematic social media use, mental health, and substance use in Czech adolescents: the comparative role of extracurricular activities — findings from the 2022 HBSC study

Background Problematic social media use (PSMU) has become a critical public health concern. However, little is known about how the associations between PSMU, mental health, and substance use differ depending on participation in distinct types of extracurricular activities. Objective The objective of this study is to examine how the associations between PSMU, mental health, and substance use vary across network models that include different types of extracurricular activities. Methodology A representative sample of 14,588 Czech adolescents (50.69% boys, mean age 13.6 ± 1.7 years) was used from the 2022 Health Behaviour in School-aged Children study. A network analysis based on undirected mixed graphical models was used to assess the associations. Separate networks for each extracurricular activity type were estimated and compared. Results When individual sports were included in the network, the association between alcohol use and PSMU was no longer observed. In both the community-based activities and individual sports networks, the previously observed positive association between irritability and PSMU-related family conflicts (w = 0.05) was absent, and the association between irritability and social media escapism was weaker (w = 0.08 → 0.03). Only sports-related activity types were negatively associated with losing interest in extracurricular activities due to PSMU, particularly individual sports (w = − 0.10). Conversely, community-based activities were positively associated with PSMU-related deception and family conflicts (w = 0.05). However, no notable differences in the network structure were observed for artistic activities or team sports. Conclusion The study underscores the contrastive nature of extracurricular activities and highlights the need for more nuanced approaches when examining their role in PSMU.