Many state lawmakers want to take action on teen mental health and say they believe restricting cellphone use in schools is a solution. But opinions and research on the topic are mixed.

Among those who oppose a full ban: Two high school students from opposite ends of the state.

Kate Riddle, a senior from Lafayette County School District, told Mississippi Today that her social media experience has always been “positive and uplifting.” 

“Social media can be a positive or negative tool; it just depends on how you use it,” she said. 

Riddle said she uses it for communication, news and entertainment. 

Crosby Parker, a junior from the Gulfport School District, also said social media hasn’t had a “tangible impact” on his mental health and that he uses it on a “need-to basis” to talk to friends.

Neither supports a full cellphone ban. But Riddle acknowledged that “phones are an immense problem in school districts and finding a way to navigate the challenges that they will bring in the coming years is vital to the success of all,” 

Riddle supports a phone ban for elementary school students, but not necessarily for older students. She suggested schools restrict cellphone use without banning phones entirely, such as taking them up before class. 

Parker supports his school’s current policy, where students can use their phones anywhere except during class. 

“This allows students to stay in communication with their family throughout the day, and it limits the phones to any time that doesn’t distract others from learning,” he said.

Earlier this month, the state youth mental health task force released their recommendations. Among them was that all school districts implement policies on cellphones and social media use in classrooms. 

At the same time, Rep. Sam Creekmore, R-New Albany, a task force member, is drafting a bill to ban cellphones in schools statewide with possibly leaving it up to each of the state’s 144 school districts to determine how to do that.. 

“As we recognize the importance of technology, we also have to recognize the importance of our children’s health, which includes mental health,” he said.

Cellphones are ubiquitous in American culture. Pew Research Center found that 95% of American teenagers between 13 and 17 have a smartphone and 23% reported using social media for four or more hours a day. 

Many educators, parents and researchers fear phones are driving the nation’s youth mental health crisis with 72% of high school teachers telling the Pew Research Center in June that they think cellphones are a major problem in classrooms.

Jonathan Haidt’s “The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness” describes how teen mental health has declined sharply since 2010. In 2020, teen suicide rates increased 91% for boys and 167% for girls. The percent of teens who reported having at least one episode of major depression increased 145% for girls and 161% for boys. Haidt and many other researchers attribute this decline to the rise of social media and cellphone use. 

Last year, U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy released a report warning about how social media harms teen mental health, citing statistics that 46% of teens said social media makes them feel worse about their body image and 64% said they were “often” or “sometimes” exposed to hate content. 

Creekmore said Haidt’s book and the surgeon general’s report are major influences for his bill.

According to a Pew Research Center survey conducted Sept. 30-Oct. 6, 68% of American adults support banning cellphones from middle and high school classrooms. Eight states have passed bans and/or restrictions on cellphones in schools so far. 

In Mississippi this year, Marshall County School District and Greenwood School District introduced bans on cellphone use during school hours. 

“Vast research connects the decline in mental health among children and adolescents in part to the near constant use of smartphones and social media,” Lt Gov Delbert Hosemann said in a statement to Mississippi Today. 

Touching on the concerns about school safety in the wake of multiple school shootings, he said, “School safety and ensuring parents can stay connected with their children are also important concerns. We are confident local districts can negotiate these competing concerns and implement policies protecting instructional time from distraction.”

Cellphone bans have their drawbacks. They can be difficult to enforce, and some parents want to be able to reach their children for pick-ups and emergencies. However, the National School Safety and Security Services says that using a phone during an emergency can actually cause more trouble by distracting people, overloading cellphone systems, disrupting evacuation efforts and more.

The research on cellphone use and its impact on teens is more mixed. There are several places where the research is lacking, including what types of content cause the most harm and how exactly social media creates/exacerbates mental health problems.

The National Academy of Sciences’ report on the topic pointed out the positives to using social media, such as communication, learning and connection. The surgeon general’s report also found that 58% of teens said that social media made them feel more accepted. 

Lynda Stewart, a mental health counselor and director of the Division of Children and Youth Services at Mississippi’s Department of Mental Health, is also part of the state task force. While she said she has no opinion on cellphone bans, she pointed out that they’re not the only factors harming youth mental health.

“Adolescence is a very, very difficult time. It’s a time when children are growing and changing,” she said. 

Stewart cited the pandemic and academic and social pressures as major problems. Young people are also more aware about mental health and are less afraid to reach out for help than previous generations.

“One thing we know about our youth today is that they’re strong and they’re brave,” she said, “and they’re more willing than any other generation of youth to let somebody know when they’re not okay.” 

The task force made several recommendations, including more schools partnering with community health centers, more mental health professionals on school staff and universal mental health screenings for students.

Stewart advised parents to check in with their kids daily and look out for behavioral red flags. This includes them always being alone, dropping hobbies they used to love, getting bad grades, and drastic changes in their style and friend groups.
Mental Health Mississippi provides information on mental health providers in the state. For mental health crises, dial the national suicide and crisis line at 988. You can also dial the DMH helpline at 1-877-210-8513 for help and information about mental health services.

This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.