Heavy use of social media may be contributing to a decline in young people’s well-being in English-speaking countries and Western Europe, with teenage girls among the hardest hit, according to the latest UN-sponsored survey of global happiness.
Published on Thursday by the University of Oxford's Wellbeing Research Centre, the annual World Happiness Report paints a mixed picture.
Life satisfaction scores among under-25s in countries including the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand have dropped markedly over the past decade. On average, scores among young people in English-speaking and Western European countries have fallen by nearly one point on a scale from 0 to 10.
Researchers point to heavy social media use as a possible contributing factor. One survey of 15-year-olds found those who spend five hours or more per day on social media reported noticeably lower life satisfaction than those who use it less.
However, the relationship is not straightforward. Young people who spend less than one hour a day on social media report the highest levels of well-being – even higher than those who do not use it at all.
"Heavy usage is associated with much lower well-being, but those deliberately off social media also appear to be missing out on some positive effects," said Jan-Emmanuel De Neve, one of the report's editors and an economics professor at Oxford.
Adolescents currently spend an average of around 2.5 hours daily on these platforms, according to an estimate by the OECD.
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Problematic platforms
The report also distinguishes between different types of platforms. Those driven by algorithmic feeds, visual content and influencers appear to be the most problematic, according to data from Latin America. In contrast, platforms centred on direct communication tend to be associated with higher life satisfaction.
Neve said it was clear "we should look as much as possible to put the 'social' back into social media".
Nor is the picture the same everywhere. In parts of the Middle East and South America, heavy social media use is not associated with the same drop in satisfaction, and in some cases is even linked to stable or improving well-being.
Researchers point to cultural, social and economic differences, but say excessive use still plays a role in declining youth well-being in several regions.
On the whole, young people outside of English-speaking and Western European countries felt better about their lives.
"Most of the world's young people are happier today than they were 20 years ago, and that's a trend that deserves attention," said Jon Clifton, chief executive of Gallup, which contributed survey data to the report.
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France at record low
France appeared 35th in the report's global ranking, its lowest position to date. It has been falling steadily since it reached its highest place at 20th in 2021.
At the top of the index, Finland claimed the title of the world’s happiest country for the ninth consecutive year. It is followed by its Nordic neighbours Iceland, Denmark, Sweden and Norway, all of which continue to perform strongly thanks to a mix of wealth, relatively equal distribution of income, robust welfare systems and long life expectancy.
Meanwhile, Costa Rica emerged as a success story, climbing to fourth place after rising steadily from 23rd in 2023. Researchers attribute the leap to strong family bonds and social connections, which appear to provide a meaningful boost to well-being.
Notably, 2026 marks a second year with no English-speaking country in the top 10, with the United States at 23rd, Canada at 25th and the UK at 29th.
Countries facing conflict and instability remain among the least happy, with Afghanistan again last, followed by Sierra Leone and Malawi.
(with newswires)
