The Impacts of Social Media Use on Growing Rates of Suicide Among Teenagers in the U.S

Background: The cases of suicide among teenagers in the U.S. have increased significantly. Among the factors considered responsible for this trend is the increasing cases of depression. Several sources, including Shain (2016) have associated this trend with the internet age and the increasing use of social media. Understand the connection between these three things, depression, suicide rates, and social media uses, can be the foundation for determining reasonable solutions to the problem of increasing suicide rates. Methods: The paper used a narrative review. A web search was conducted on the following key phrases: social media, depression, suicide, suicide trends among American teenagers, social media use among American teenagers, and the relationship between social media use and suicide rates. Afterwards, the information was compiled to formulate a more comprehensive outlook at the problem of suicides as is affected by social media use. Results: It was found that depression is among the primary causes of suicidal tendencies among teenagers in the U.S. Furthermore, it was noted that social media is a prominent contributor to the increasing cases of depression, and hence suicidal tendencies, among American teenagers. Conclusion: There is a need for intervention methods for teenagers with suicidal tendencies and increased control of content posted on social media.