Teen Health Research Study
Researchers from the University of Pittsburgh studying how social media affects adolescent girls' brain development and mental health
Who Can Participate
- 12-17 year old girls who struggle with suicidal thoughts or engage in self-injury (e.g. cutting, burning)
Facts About Our Study
Our research study is evaluating how teenage girls’ daily experiences affect suicidal ideation, thoughts and behaviors, depression symptoms, and well-being.
Participants must be teenage girls between the ages of 12 and 17 years
Participants must be assigned female at birth
Participants must have no metal in the body (e.g. braces)
Compensation will be provided
Study Background
In recent years, adolescents have been experiencing increasing rates of emotional health problems, such as depression, suicidal thoughts, and self-injurious behaviors. We are interested in better understanding how adolescents’ social media experiences, other social interactions, and patterns of brain functioning influence these emotional health problems.
We hope this study will improve our understanding of why some teens go on to develop these problems and other teens do not. Ultimately, we hope this information will help us learn how to improve emotional health in teens.
We hope this study will improve our understanding of why some teens go on to develop these problems and other teens do not. Ultimately, we hope this information will help us learn how to improve emotional health in teens.
Additional Information
Our study is aimed at understanding how social media affects teenage girls' brain development and mental health
You or your child may qualify for this study if she meets the following criteria:
Eligibility Criteria:
Eligibility Criteria:
- Teenage girl between 12-17 years old
- Struggles with suicidal thoughts and/or self-harm
- Owns a smartphone
- Has no metal in her body (can complete an MRI)
- Assigned female at birth
Participation involves an MRI scan, interviews, questionnaire, parent-child interaction, and surveys of social media use.
Participants will be compensated for their time.
There is no cost to participate in this study.