Evidence Library
Comprehensive data charts, academic papers, and statistical analysis on the impact of social media on children and adolescents.
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Social Media Platforms Used by Young Users for Information on Political and Social Issues (EU27 average)
On average across the 27 European member states, Instagram was found to be the most commonly used platform (47%), followed by TikTok (39%) and YouTube (37%). Lower shares obtain information from Facebook (27%) and X (Twitter) (21%). WhatsApp is used for information on political and social issues by 16% of respondents. Other social media and platforms, including Snapchat (9%), Telegram (7%), Messenger (6%), LinkedIn (5%), Discord (4%) and Viber (2%), are mentioned less often by young people as sources of information on political and social issues.
Social Media Use Among 13-Year-Olds by Gender (2022)
Gender differences in problematic media use are highest. Overall, problematic social media use is higher for 13-year old girls than boys. The survey covers 44 countries and regions in Europe, central Asia and Canada.
The percentage of parents reporting that their child aged 8 to 15 years no longer has an account on an age-restricted social media platform versus those who have retained it, by platform NEW
This table shows the proportion of Australian parents who reported whether their child aged 8 to 15 retained or lost their account on major social media platforms following the implementation of age-restriction legislation in Australia in December 2025. The data reveal a significant 'retention gap' across the digital landscape, with the majority of underage users (around 70%) managing to keep their accounts on popular platforms such as Instagram, Snapchat and TikTok. An interesting trend emerges regarding platform-specific efficacy with significant differences between platforms.
The proportion of children using social media platforms who have seen violent content
This table shows the percentage of children using various social media and messaging platforms who have encountered violent content. Exposure is most prevalent on TikTok (44%) and X (43%), with nearly half of young users on these platforms reporting that they have seen such material. Around one-third of children encounter violent content on Facebook (33%), Snapchat (32%) and Instagram (31%). Moderate exposure levels are reported on community and video sites such as YouTube and Reddit (both 26%), with lower rates observed on private messaging services like WhatsApp (18%) and Discord (12%). The lowest reported exposure rates occur on specialised communication and streaming tools, including Twitch (6%) and iMessage (5%). The data indicates a clear hierarchy of risk, with public, algorithmically driven platforms showing significantly higher rates of exposure to violent content than private messaging apps.
Top-5 Main Sources of Information for Young People (16 to 30 Years Old), 2024
This chart shows the top five main sources of information for young people aged 16 to 30. The data reveal a clear predominance of digital-first habits, with social media platforms (42%) such as Instagram and TikTok serving as the primary gateway to information for this demographic. This is followed closely by TV (39%), indicating that while digital platforms lead, traditional broadcast media still maintains a significant foothold in the daily lives of young adults. A significant trend emerges in the fragmentation of other sources: online press and news platforms (26%) trail social media by 16 percentage points, suggesting a shift away from direct news consumption toward algorithmically curated content. Friends, family, and colleagues (25%) remain a critical interpersonal source of information, while video platforms (23%) like YouTube solidify the importance of visual media as a primary information channel.
When you're unsure whether a piece of information on social media is disinformation, what do you typically do?
This table illustrates the typical verification strategies employed by European citizens when encountering suspected disinformation on social media across European member states in 2022. Almost half of European citizens (49%) rely on cross-referencing information to verify social media content. However, specialised fact-checking tools are significantly underutilised, with only 14% of people using them. This 'verification gap' suggests that most users rely on informal peer feedback rather than professional infrastructure to navigate digital falsehoods.
Youth (16-29) Internet Use for Civic and Political Participation (2023-2025)
The chart shows data on internet use for civic and political participation for individuals aged 16 to 29 years old over the years 2023-2025. The data reveal that digital civic engagement has become a significant, though periodically volatile, component of youth identity in Europe. The European Union average reached a notable peak in 2024 at 26.06%, coinciding with a period of intense political activity across the Union.
Youth Internet Use by Gender (2025)
The 2025 Eurostat data confirms that young women have become the primary occupants of the European digital landscape. On average, 77% of EU females aged 16–29 were active internet users in the monitored period, compared to 74.5% of their male counterparts. This 2.6-percentage-point suggests that digital platforms are integral to the daily life and social connectivity of young women. The gender disparity is most pronounced in Slovenia, where female active usage outstrips males by over 12 percentage points (71.3% vs. 59%), and in Cyprus, where the gap exceeds 11.7 percentage points. In high-saturation markets like Denmark, female participation reaches 92%. Conversely, a another trend is present in a few countries, with North Macedonia showing the the highest opposite difference between male and female usage (9 percentage points), followed by Serbia with 3.6 percentage points difference.