Problematic Media Use: Strategies and Interventions

Question: What are some strategies or interventions for students with social media addiction? 

Answer: 

Understanding Problematic Media Use vs Addiction  

Thank you for this question! It can first be helpful to discuss terms related to “problematic technology use” or “problematic internet use.” Problematic use is using technology or the internet in ways that may have social and physical impacts; for example, prioritizing technology or internet use so much that an adolescent doesn’t interact with friends or family offline, or being on their phone so late into the night that a teen falls asleep in class.   

While “addiction” terminology may frequently be used to describe problematic technology or internet use and often dominates the headlines around social media, recent studies have actually shown that it’s not an accurate way to describe teens’ experiences with social media. Research finds instead that when young people experience problematic use of social media, it’s more of a broad range of challenges they experience; addictive behaviors are only at the extreme end of that spectrum.   

If you’d like to learn more about the use of “addiction” language and why it falls short, you can visit this portal question: The Use of “Addiction” Language Around Social Media Usage. If you’d like to learn more about the term “Problematic Technology Use”, you can visit this portal question: Problematic Technology Use.   

Identifying Problematic Technology/Media Use 

If you are worried that a student may be struggling with problematic technology use, look for changes in their behavior, such as:  

• Lower grades due to overuse of technology  
• Avoiding offline social contacts to be online 
• Being emotionally withdrawn due to negative experiences on technology  

Consider using a validated screening tool for problematic internet use like the Problematic and Risky Internet Use Screening Scale (PRIUSS) that is used in many physician’s offices. When thinking about strategies to help students who may be struggling with problematic internet use, this scale can be used to identify the particular areas in which the student is struggling and tailor solutions to focus specifically on those issue areas. The PRIUSS scale has 18 items and 3 subscales. The three subscales are Social Impairment, Emotional Impairment, and Risky/Impulsive Internet Use. These subscales may represent loose groupings of ways that students may struggle with their internet use.  

Strategies for Intervention 

Below are specific strategies, developed along with our youth advisors, that could be offered to a student to help ease the impacts they may be experiencing. 

Social Impairment 

• Consider limiting your favorite social media platform such that you only follow your close friends, which can encourage social connection and decrease endless scrolling. 
• Make plans to socialize in person instead of online. For example, create a plan to meet up with friends at a coffee shop. 
• Learn more about Problematic Internet Use, how to take control of your social media feeds, and more by exploring the Teen section of our Question and Answer Portal. 

Emotional Impairment 

• Use the PRIUSS measurement tool to re-center yourself and get insight into your own behaviors. Using an objective tool can help you figure out if you are experiencing an issue or struggling or it may show you that you are doing better and you can feel good about that progress! 
• Evaluate whether media or technology is “crowding out” any meaningful interests or hobbies. 
• If you are feeling emotions like anger or anxiety due to your use, consider other outlets and interests including considering different ways of using media, such as watching a TV show or listening to music. Longer form media, like a movie or TV show, may help you get involved in a story and relax into that story. Some teens find the short-form video streams on social media to be more anxiety-provoking, and they don’t get the benefit of a “story”. Other options include: 
  • Drawing 
  • Book reading 
  • Exercise  
• Consider a mindfulness or meditation exercise, such as mindfulness apps.  

Risky/Impulsive Internet Use 

• Consider using settings to limit your use within specific platforms or on your phone more generally, such as setting maximum time limits or ending use at a certain time of the evening. 
• The Glossary of Digital Media Platforms is a resource that can help students create privacy settings and manage their screen time. 
• Families might also consider creating a Family Media Plan. 
• If a certain app or platform is leading to a particular difficulty or problematic use, think about deleting that app from your phone and taking a break from it. 
• When engaged in other important tasks, such as schoolwork or sleeping, consider putting your phone out of sight/reach.  
• If you are losing sleep due to nighttime internet use, create a sleep-focused plan to charge your phone outside of the bedroom.   

Prevention and Intervention Effectiveness 

Prior reviews of the research examining prevention and intervention programs for problematic technology or internet use have shown that generally, individual prevention and intervention programs can be effective in reducing problematic uses among youth (Nagata et al., 2025; Shi et al., 2022; Cañas & Estévez, 2021; Romero Saletti et al., 2021).  

Many of these programs were grounded in a theoretical approach called social cognitive theory, or the theory that highlights how our cognitive processes predict our behaviors, including how we learn by observing others’ behaviors. These programs emphasized concepts such as self-efficacy, or a person’s belief in their capabilities to execute certain behaviors to accomplish tasks, and self-regulation, or the ability to control emotions, thoughts, or behaviors, and involves self-monitoring and self-evaluation. In general, programs that highlighted these concepts saw increases in efficacy and regulation and decreases in problematic behaviors.  

Other programs focused on educating young people in a variety of ways, such as through media or digital literacy programs, or by educating them on recognizing problematic technology use, identifying and instituting healthy uses of media, or by focusing on general social and emotional skills. For such an example, see Common Sense Media’s curriculum: Common Sense Education: Digital Learning and Citizenship. 

Lastly, programs that focused on individual or group therapy often utilized cognitive-behavioral techniques, which appeared to be helpful in managing problematic behaviors.  

Resources  

• If you are looking for more resources specifically around problematic use, check out these portal responses: 
  • The Use of “Addiction” Language Around Social Media Usage: This portal response describes why the concept of “addiction” to describe social media use falls short offering a more nuanced definition by defining the framework of Problematic Internet Use. This resource also describes what can be done if there are concerns about a young person.  
  • Problematic Technology Use: This portal response also reframes problematic technology use and provides some information to identify problematic use.  
  • Helping Students Address Problematic Technology Use: This portal response offers three approaches: balance, boundaries, and communication to prevent problematic use. 
• Clinicians and other professionals may find the Problematic Media Use: Screening and Intervention Tools for Clinicians section of the Center’s website particularly helpful. 

References 

• Cañas, E., & Estévez, E. (2021). Intervention programs for the problematic use of the internet and technological devices: A systematic review. Electronics, 10(23), 2923.  
• Jelenchick, L. A., Eickhoff, J., Christakis, D. A., Brown, R. L., Zhang, C., Benson, M., & Moreno, M. A. (2014). The Problematic and Risky Internet Use Screening Scale (PRIUSS) for Adolescents and Young Adults: Scale Development and Refinement. Computers in human behavior, 35,  
• Moreno MA, Jelenchick LA, Christakis DA (2013) Problematic internet use among older adolescents: A conceptual framework. Comput. Hum. Behav. 2013;29(4): 1879-1887.     
• Nagata, J. M., Hur, J. O., Talebloo, J., Lee, S., Choi, W. W., Kim, S. J., ... & Moreno, M. A. (2025). Problematic Social Media Use Interventions for Mental Health Outcomes in Adolescents. Current psychiatry reports, 1-9. 
• Romero Saletti, S. M., Van den Broucke, S., & Chau, C. (2021). The effectiveness of prevention programs for problematic Internet use in adolescents and youths: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Cyberpsychology: Journal of Psychosocial Research on Cyberspace, 15(2), Article 10.  
• Shi, J., van der Maas, M., Yu, L., Jiang, Q., Agasee, S., & Turner, N. E. (2022). Current prevention strategies and future directions for problem Internet use. Current Opinion in Behavioral Sciences, 48, 101231.  

Age: 14-22 

Topic: Social media addiction, Strategies for social media addiction, problematic use

Role: Other, Researcher