A recent national study finds that lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) preteens ages 10-14 reported 10.4 hours of each day recreational screen time, which was nearly 4 hours greater than their straight peers.

Lesbian, gay, and bisexual adolescents usually tend to experience school-based bullying and exclusion from peer groups as a result of their sexual orientation, leading them to spend less time in traditional school activities and more time on screens. Texting, and using social media and the web for virtual communication could possibly be helpful for LGB preteens to seek out and receive support from other LGB individuals who is probably not available of their local communities.”

Jason Nagata, MD, lead writer, assistant professor of pediatrics, University of California, San Francisco

The researchers analyzed data from 10,339 preteens who’re a part of the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development Study, the biggest long-term study of brain development and child health in america. Data were collected from 2018-2020 and the study was published in Annals of Epidemiology. The preteens answered questions on their screen time habits and sexual orientation.

The researchers found that preteens who identified as LGB reported experiencing more problematic social media use. Examples of problematic social media use included using it an excessive amount of, having conflicts related to it, needing more of it over time, and having difficulty quitting even once they desired to.

“LGB young people specifically face marginalization and discrimination based on sexual identity at relatively high rates,” says co-author, Kyle T. Ganson, PhD, assistant professor on the University of Toronto’s Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work. “Adolescent development is a difficult time for a lot of given the social pressures and physical, psychological, and emotional changes that occur.”

The authors argue that while digital media can have essential advantages, reminiscent of support and socialization for LGB adolescents, parents should attempt to mitigate the risks of excessive screen use, which may include physical inactivity, poor sleep, and problematic use.

“Parents should recurrently talk over with their children about screen usage and develop a family media use plan,” Nagata says.

Source:

Journal reference:

Nagata, J. M., et al. (2023). Associations between sexual orientation and early adolescent screen use: Findings from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study. Annals of Epidemiology. doi.org/10.1016/j.annepidem.2023.03.004.