Social Media Use, Online Bullying and School Engagement in Adolescents: The Role of Anxiety
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MONARCH ROOM - In-Person & Virtual via OnAIR
| Monday, March 16, 2026 |
| 4:40 PM - 5:00 PM |
Overview
Dr Mark Kohler, Adelaide University
Presenter
Dr Mark Kohler
Senior Lecturer
Adelaide University
Social Media Use, Online Bullying and School Engagement in Adolescents: The Role of Anxiety
Presentation Overview
Adolescents today navigate schooling within highly digitalised environments, where social media use and online bullying is prevalent and increasingly recognised as a risk for poor wellbeing. Although both social media use and online bullying have been individually linked to adverse outcomes, their combined influence on school engagement remains underexplored. The current study examined whether social media use and online bullying predicted lower school engagement among Australian adolescents, and whether symptoms of anxiety mediated these relationships.
Participants were 57,998 students in Grades 7-12 (ages 11-18) who completed the 2025 Resilience Survey. Measures included single-item self-reports of social media use and experiences of online bullying, a latent factor score for school engagement and a validated two-item scale of anxiety. A mediation model tested direct and indirect pathways between variables, controlling for gender and socioeconomic status (SES).
Results indicated that both social media use and online bullying independently predicted lower school engagement, with anxiety emerging as a significant mediator. Gender-based analyses revealed more pronounced effects for females, whereas differences in SES were not significantly associated with outcomes. The model explained 13% of the variance in school engagement, suggesting modest but meaningful effects.
These findings support prior empirical and theoretical literature suggesting digital stressors heighten anxiety and, in turn, diminish attentional resources essential for engagement. Further, results provide an impetus for school-based interventions that integrate mental health support with digital literacy education to promote resilience and sustain school engagement in adolescence.
Three Key Learnings:
1. Greater social media use and online bullying each predict reduced school engagement
2. The effect of teen media use on school engagement appears to be mediated through its association with anxiety
3. The influence of social media on school engagement is stronger amongst female teens compared to males
Participants were 57,998 students in Grades 7-12 (ages 11-18) who completed the 2025 Resilience Survey. Measures included single-item self-reports of social media use and experiences of online bullying, a latent factor score for school engagement and a validated two-item scale of anxiety. A mediation model tested direct and indirect pathways between variables, controlling for gender and socioeconomic status (SES).
Results indicated that both social media use and online bullying independently predicted lower school engagement, with anxiety emerging as a significant mediator. Gender-based analyses revealed more pronounced effects for females, whereas differences in SES were not significantly associated with outcomes. The model explained 13% of the variance in school engagement, suggesting modest but meaningful effects.
These findings support prior empirical and theoretical literature suggesting digital stressors heighten anxiety and, in turn, diminish attentional resources essential for engagement. Further, results provide an impetus for school-based interventions that integrate mental health support with digital literacy education to promote resilience and sustain school engagement in adolescence.
Three Key Learnings:
1. Greater social media use and online bullying each predict reduced school engagement
2. The effect of teen media use on school engagement appears to be mediated through its association with anxiety
3. The influence of social media on school engagement is stronger amongst female teens compared to males
Biography
With a background in psychophysiology, Mark’s research focusses on understanding how everyday behaviours such as sleep, physical activity, screen-time and spending time in nature impact on cognition, learning and wellbeing throughout development. Much of his current work involves strong industry partnerships and applications. Mark joined The University of Adelaide in 2018, after working as Senior Lecturer and Program Director for Cognitive Neuroscience at the University of South Australia from 2010. Prior to this he completed a post-doctoral research position in Paediatrics at the University of Adelaide.
