A systematic review of social media impact on psychological well-being among children, adolescents, and young adults in arab countries

<h3 dir="ltr">Background</h3><p dir="ltr">Social media is a major part of daily life for youth worldwide, including in Arab countries. Although it offers avenues for connection and information, growing concerns exist around its psychological impacts. This review...

وصف كامل

محفوظ في:
التفاصيل البيبلوغرافية
المؤلف الرئيسي: Amani N. Alansari (19743643) (author)
مؤلفون آخرون: Abdallah Alwawi (22921001) (author), Amani Salim (2371435) (author), Nizar Tarawah (22921004) (author), Amine Ksia (16001677) (author), Mohamed Sayed Zaazouee (10576593) (author)
منشور في: 2025
الموضوعات:
الوسوم: إضافة وسم
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author Amani N. Alansari (19743643)
author2 Abdallah Alwawi (22921001)
Amani Salim (2371435)
Nizar Tarawah (22921004)
Amine Ksia (16001677)
Mohamed Sayed Zaazouee (10576593)
author2_role author
author
author
author
author
author_facet Amani N. Alansari (19743643)
Abdallah Alwawi (22921001)
Amani Salim (2371435)
Nizar Tarawah (22921004)
Amine Ksia (16001677)
Mohamed Sayed Zaazouee (10576593)
author_role author
dc.creator.none.fl_str_mv Amani N. Alansari (19743643)
Abdallah Alwawi (22921001)
Amani Salim (2371435)
Nizar Tarawah (22921004)
Amine Ksia (16001677)
Mohamed Sayed Zaazouee (10576593)
dc.date.none.fl_str_mv 2025-12-11T18:00:00Z
dc.identifier.none.fl_str_mv 10.1016/j.ajp.2025.104793
dc.relation.none.fl_str_mv https://figshare.com/articles/journal_contribution/A_systematic_review_of_social_media_impact_on_psychological_well-being_among_children_adolescents_and_young_adults_in_arab_countries/30962459
dc.rights.none.fl_str_mv CC BY 4.0
info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
dc.subject.none.fl_str_mv Health sciences
Health services and systems
Psychology
Clinical and health psychology
Adolescents
Arab countries
Mental health
Social media use
Systematic review
dc.title.none.fl_str_mv A systematic review of social media impact on psychological well-being among children, adolescents, and young adults in arab countries
dc.type.none.fl_str_mv Text
Journal contribution
info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion
text
contribution to journal
description <h3 dir="ltr">Background</h3><p dir="ltr">Social media is a major part of daily life for youth worldwide, including in Arab countries. Although it offers avenues for connection and information, growing concerns exist around its psychological impacts. This review aims to synthesize existing evidence on the association between social media use and mental health outcomes among children, adolescents, and young adults in Arab countries. </p><h3 dir="ltr">Methods</h3><p dir="ltr">We systematically searched PubMed, Scopus, EMBASE, and Web of Science for peer-reviewed studies published until October 2025. Inclusion criteria targeted observational studies involving participants aged ≤ 25 years from Arab League countries, focusing on the relationship between social media use and mental health indicators. Data were extracted and quality assessed using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale adaptation for cross-sectional designs. </p><h3 dir="ltr">Results</h3><p dir="ltr">Twenty-one cross-sectional studies, encompassing over 15,000 participants with a mean age ranging from 13 to 25 years and representing multiple Arab countries, met the inclusion criteria. Findings revealed consistent associations between high or problematic social media use and adverse mental health outcomes, including anxiety, depression, sleep disturbances, and academic decline. Several studies highlighted emotional investment and nighttime use as key mediators. Sleep disruption and academic interference were common outcomes across settings. </p><h3 dir="ltr">Conclusion</h3><p dir="ltr">High levels of emotionally charged social media use among Arab children, adolescents, and young adults are associated with significant psychological and functional challenges, emphasizing the need for culturally tailored digital literacy and early screening. However, the predominance of cross-sectional designs across the included studies limits causal inference and underscores the necessity for future longitudinal and experimental research.</p><h2 dir="ltr">Other Information</h2><p dir="ltr">Published in: Asian Journal of Psychiatry<br>License: <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/" target="_blank">http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/</a><br>See article on publisher's website: <a href="https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ajp.2025.104793" target="_blank">https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ajp.2025.104793</a></p>
eu_rights_str_mv openAccess
id Manara2_50c14be815e3686ca21d504b3a97f1e7
identifier_str_mv 10.1016/j.ajp.2025.104793
network_acronym_str Manara2
network_name_str Manara2
oai_identifier_str oai:figshare.com:article/30962459
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spelling A systematic review of social media impact on psychological well-being among children, adolescents, and young adults in arab countriesAmani N. Alansari (19743643)Abdallah Alwawi (22921001)Amani Salim (2371435)Nizar Tarawah (22921004)Amine Ksia (16001677)Mohamed Sayed Zaazouee (10576593)Health sciencesHealth services and systemsPsychologyClinical and health psychologyAdolescentsArab countriesMental healthSocial media useSystematic review<h3 dir="ltr">Background</h3><p dir="ltr">Social media is a major part of daily life for youth worldwide, including in Arab countries. Although it offers avenues for connection and information, growing concerns exist around its psychological impacts. This review aims to synthesize existing evidence on the association between social media use and mental health outcomes among children, adolescents, and young adults in Arab countries. </p><h3 dir="ltr">Methods</h3><p dir="ltr">We systematically searched PubMed, Scopus, EMBASE, and Web of Science for peer-reviewed studies published until October 2025. Inclusion criteria targeted observational studies involving participants aged ≤ 25 years from Arab League countries, focusing on the relationship between social media use and mental health indicators. Data were extracted and quality assessed using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale adaptation for cross-sectional designs. </p><h3 dir="ltr">Results</h3><p dir="ltr">Twenty-one cross-sectional studies, encompassing over 15,000 participants with a mean age ranging from 13 to 25 years and representing multiple Arab countries, met the inclusion criteria. Findings revealed consistent associations between high or problematic social media use and adverse mental health outcomes, including anxiety, depression, sleep disturbances, and academic decline. Several studies highlighted emotional investment and nighttime use as key mediators. Sleep disruption and academic interference were common outcomes across settings. </p><h3 dir="ltr">Conclusion</h3><p dir="ltr">High levels of emotionally charged social media use among Arab children, adolescents, and young adults are associated with significant psychological and functional challenges, emphasizing the need for culturally tailored digital literacy and early screening. However, the predominance of cross-sectional designs across the included studies limits causal inference and underscores the necessity for future longitudinal and experimental research.</p><h2 dir="ltr">Other Information</h2><p dir="ltr">Published in: Asian Journal of Psychiatry<br>License: <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/" target="_blank">http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/</a><br>See article on publisher's website: <a href="https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ajp.2025.104793" target="_blank">https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ajp.2025.104793</a></p>2025-12-11T18:00:00ZTextJournal contributioninfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersiontextcontribution to journal10.1016/j.ajp.2025.104793https://figshare.com/articles/journal_contribution/A_systematic_review_of_social_media_impact_on_psychological_well-being_among_children_adolescents_and_young_adults_in_arab_countries/30962459CC BY 4.0info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccessoai:figshare.com:article/309624592025-12-11T18:00:00Z
spellingShingle A systematic review of social media impact on psychological well-being among children, adolescents, and young adults in arab countries
Amani N. Alansari (19743643)
Health sciences
Health services and systems
Psychology
Clinical and health psychology
Adolescents
Arab countries
Mental health
Social media use
Systematic review
status_str publishedVersion
title A systematic review of social media impact on psychological well-being among children, adolescents, and young adults in arab countries
title_full A systematic review of social media impact on psychological well-being among children, adolescents, and young adults in arab countries
title_fullStr A systematic review of social media impact on psychological well-being among children, adolescents, and young adults in arab countries
title_full_unstemmed A systematic review of social media impact on psychological well-being among children, adolescents, and young adults in arab countries
title_short A systematic review of social media impact on psychological well-being among children, adolescents, and young adults in arab countries
title_sort A systematic review of social media impact on psychological well-being among children, adolescents, and young adults in arab countries
topic Health sciences
Health services and systems
Psychology
Clinical and health psychology
Adolescents
Arab countries
Mental health
Social media use
Systematic review