Deactivating Social Media Improves Emotional State (Research Findings)
Key Takeaways – The Bottom Line
- Quitting social media can boost your mood – Taking a break from Facebook or Instagram improved happiness and reduced depression and anxiety in a massive study.
- Who you are matters – Older adults (over 35) saw bigger benefits from quitting Facebook. Young women (18–24) got the biggest mood boost from ditching Instagram.
- You'll probably just swap apps – Most people who quit Instagram simply shifted their screen time to other apps like YouTube or TikTok. Facebook quitters actually reduced their overall phone use by about 9 minutes a day.
- It helps, but it's not a miracle cure – The mood improvements were meaningful but modest – about 15–22% of what you'd get from something like cognitive behavioural therapy.
What Happens When You Quit Social Media?
We've all heard the debates. Is social media bringing us together or tearing us apart? Does scrolling through your feed lift your spirits or drag them down?
As a physiotherapist, I spend my days helping people recover from injuries and manage pain. But here's what I've learned over 20 years in practice: your mental and emotional state directly affects your physical health. When you're feeling down or anxious, your pain can feel worse, your recovery may slow down, and your quality of life can take a hit.
So when a study comes along that helps us understand what actually affects our emotional wellbeing, I pay attention.
A team of researchers led by Allcott, Gentzkow, and colleagues ran the largest-ever experiment on this topic – involving nearly 20,000 Facebook users and over 15,500 Instagram users in the lead-up to the 2020 U.S. presidential election. They asked people to deactivate their accounts for either one week or six weeks, then measured how happy, depressed, and anxious they felt.
A Physio's Perspective
I see the mind-body connection every day in my clinic. Stress, anxiety, and low mood can amplify pain, delay healing, and make it harder to stay motivated with rehab. Understanding how our digital habits affect our emotional state isn't just interesting – it's relevant to your overall health.
What's in This Guide
1. Quick Answer
Deactivating social media improves your emotional state. According to this massive study, taking a six-week break from Facebook or Instagram made people feel happier and less depressed and anxious. The benefits weren't huge, but they were real. And interestingly, who you are matters a lot – older adults (over 35) got more out of quitting Facebook, while young women (18–24) saw the biggest gains from quitting Instagram.
2. What the Study Found
Here's how the study worked: researchers recruited people who used Facebook or Instagram for at least 15 minutes a day. Participants were randomly split into two groups:
- Treatment group (27%): Deactivated their account for the full six weeks. They received $150 for their time.
- Control group (73%): Deactivated for just the first week. They received $25.
Everyone filled out surveys asking how much of the time in the past four weeks they felt happy, depressed, and anxious. The researchers combined these three measures into an overall "emotional state" score.
The Main Finding
People who deactivated their social media felt better emotionally. The improvement was consistent across both Facebook and Instagram, though the size of the effect varied between the two platforms and between different groups of people.
3. Facebook Deactivation
Quitting Facebook for six weeks improved people's emotional state. When the researchers broke it down into the three specific feelings they measured:
- Happiness: Went up noticeably.
- Depression: Went down – people felt less depressed.
- Anxiety: Went down slightly, but this change was small enough that it could have been due to chance.
To put it in everyday terms, on a simple five-point scale, Facebook deactivation improved happiness by about 0.05 points, depression by about 0.045 points, and anxiety by about 0.03 points. That might not sound like much, but when you multiply it across thousands of people, it adds up to a real, measurable shift in wellbeing.
4. Instagram Deactivation
Quitting Instagram also made people feel better. The overall emotional state improved, and again, the breakdown showed:
- Happiness: Went up.
- Depression: Went down (though this was a smaller change).
- Anxiety: Went down (also a smaller change).
On that same five-point scale, Instagram deactivation improved happiness by about 0.04 points, depression by about 0.03 points, and anxiety by about 0.03 points. The effects were similar to Facebook's, but – as we'll see next – certain groups felt the benefits much more strongly.
5. Who Benefits Most?
This is where it gets really interesting. Not everyone benefits equally from quitting social media. The study found significant differences based on age, gender, and other factors.
Facebook: Older Adults See Bigger Gains
For Facebook, people over 35 experienced greater improvements in emotional state than younger users. The difference was statistically meaningful, meaning it wasn't just random variation.
Instagram: The Young Women Effect
For Instagram, the findings were even more striking. Women aged 18–24 saw the largest benefits by far – their emotional state improved more than twice as much as any other group. The effects for other groups (men of any age, women over 24) were so small that they could have been due to chance.
Why This Matters
This finding is consistent with widespread concerns about Instagram's impact on young women's mental health. The researchers note that this specific result had gone undetected in previous, smaller studies – it took a study of this scale to highlight it.
Other Differences
- Education: People without college degrees saw larger benefits from quitting Facebook.
- Political engagement: Effects weren't driven by political content – the benefits weren't significantly different between politically engaged and non-engaged people.
- How much you use it: Whether you were a heavy or light user didn't seem to change how much you benefited from quitting.
- How you felt to start with: People who started off feeling worse didn't benefit more than those who started off feeling fine.
6. Where Does the Time Go?
When you quit one app, you don't just sit there staring at a blank screen. The researchers tracked people's smartphone usage to see where the freed-up time went.
Facebook Quitters
- Reduced Facebook time by 37 minutes per day.
- Total phone usage dropped by only 9 minutes per day.
- About three-quarters of the time was simply shifted to other apps – especially Instagram (up 4 minutes), but also Twitter, Snapchat, TikTok, YouTube, and web browsers.
Instagram Quitters
- Reduced Instagram time by 20 minutes per day.
- Total phone usage didn't drop at all – every single minute was redirected to other apps.
- People increased their time on Twitter, Snapchat, TikTok, YouTube, and web browsers.
Key insight: The fact that people still felt better even though they replaced one app with another tells us something important. It's not just about "screen time" – the specific content and experience of Facebook and Instagram seem to be what affects our mood. Scrolling through YouTube or TikTok isn't the same as scrolling through Instagram, at least when it comes to how it makes us feel.
7. How Big Are the Effects, Really?
The researchers wanted to give us some way to understand whether these improvements are meaningful in the real world. So they compared them to a few benchmarks.
Compared to Psychological Interventions
Treatments like cognitive behavioural therapy and mindfulness-based therapy improve wellbeing by about 0.27 standard deviations on average, according to a large meta-analysis. The effects of quitting Facebook or Instagram were about 15–22% as large as that.
In plain English: quitting social media gives you a modest mood boost – about a fifth of what you'd get from working with a psychologist or therapist. That's meaningful, but it's not a replacement for professional help.
Compared to National Mental Health Trends
From 2008 to 2022, mental health declined significantly for young adults in the U.S. The effect of quitting Instagram for people aged 18–24 was about 17% as large as that overall worsening trend. Again, this suggests social media is a factor, but not the only factor.
A Note of Caution
The researchers themselves point out: "This comparison is not informative about the share of the national trend caused by Instagram. The effect of Instagram being adopted in the full U.S. population over a 15-year period could be quite different from the effect of our five-week deactivation." In other words, we can't say Instagram caused the decline in mental health – but the study does suggest it's part of the picture.
8. Important Limitations
What the Study Doesn't Tell Us
- Only 1% of invited people actually joined. This means the participants might not represent the average social media user – they were people who were willing to deactivate their accounts for a study.
- It was only six weeks. Would the benefits last longer? Would they fade? The study doesn't answer that.
- It was during the 2020 U.S. election. That was a uniquely stressful time. The effects might be different in a "normal" period.
- It relied on self-reported feelings. People might have answered differently just because they knew they were in a study.
9. What This Means for You
As a physiotherapist I'm not a psychologist or mental health expert, but we need to think about health holistically. Your mental state affects your physical state. Here's how I'd translate these findings into practical advice:
- Your digital environment matters. The apps you use aren't neutral – they affect how you feel. If you're struggling with low mood or anxiety, your social media habits are worth looking at.
- It's not just about "cutting down." The substitution effect shows that simply reducing screen time isn't the whole story. Which apps you use matters. Replacing Instagram with YouTube might not have the same benefit as replacing it with something offline.
- One size doesn't fit all. If you're a young woman, Instagram might be affecting you differently than it affects your partner or your parents. Pay attention to your experience, not just general advice.
- This is a complement to, not a substitute for, professional care. If you're genuinely struggling with depression or anxiety, please see a professional. Quitting social media might help, but it's not a cure.
My Clinical Pearl
When I'm working with patients who are dealing with chronic pain or slow recovery, I often ask about their stress levels and mood. If someone tells me they're spending hours on social media and feeling worse, perhaps it's time we begin to suggest a trial break – even just a week – to see how they feel. It could be a low-risk, high-potential-reward intervention that can be part of a broader approach to wellbeing.
10. Frequently Asked Questions
1. Does quitting social media actually make people happier?
Yes. The study found that deactivating Facebook or Instagram for six weeks improved emotional state – a combined measure of happiness, depression, and anxiety. The improvements were modest but consistent.
2. How does this compare to therapy?
The mood boost from quitting social media was about 15–22% as large as the benefit people typically get from psychological interventions like cognitive behavioural therapy. So it's helpful, but it's not a replacement for professional mental health care.
3. Why does Instagram affect young women differently?
The study found that women aged 18–24 benefited more than twice as much from quitting Instagram compared to any other group. The researchers note that this aligns with public concerns about Instagram's impact on young women's body image and social comparison. The effect was so clear that it suggests Instagram may be uniquely harmful to this demographic.
4. If I quit Instagram, won't I just waste time on other apps?
Probably – the study found that Instagram quitters shifted every single minute of freed-up time to other apps. But here's the key: they still felt better. This suggests that the content and experience of Instagram itself – not just "screen time" – is what affects mood. So yes, you might swap apps, but you may still feel better because you're avoiding whatever it is about Instagram that drags you down.
5. Does this apply outside of election periods?
The study was conducted during the stressful lead-up to the 2020 U.S. presidential election. However, the researchers found that the effects weren't driven by political engagement – even non-political people benefited. This suggests the findings likely apply more broadly, though we can't be certain without more research.
6. Should I quit social media completely?
That's a personal decision. The study shows benefits from a six-week break, but it doesn't tell us what happens when you go back. Some people might benefit from a complete detox, others might benefit from setting boundaries (like no social media before bed, or limiting to 15 minutes a day). The best approach is to experiment and see what works for you.
One profound insight from this study
"The sign of these effects are consistent with public concerns about the effects of social media. However, the estimated effect sizes are smaller than benchmarks such as the effects of psychological interventions." – Allcott, Gentzkow et al.
11. Clinical Bottom Line
This landmark study gives us strong evidence that taking a break from Facebook or Instagram can improve your mood – especially if you're in the groups that benefit most (older adults for Facebook, young women for Instagram).
The effects are modest but real – about a fifth of what you'd get from professional therapy. And perhaps most importantly, the study shows that it's not about "screen time" – it's about the specific platform. Instagram seems to affect young women uniquely, and Facebook affects older adults differently.
For anyone looking after their health – physical or mental – this is practical, actionable information. Assess your social media habits. Consider a trial break if you're feeling down. And remember that this is one tool in the toolbox, not a replacement for professional care if you need it.
Medical Disclaimer: The information provided in this article is for educational and informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional for personalised advice, diagnosis, and treatment. This information is not intended to replace a face-to-face consultation with a physiotherapist, psychologist, or other healthcare provider.
References
- Allcott, H., Gentzkow, M., Mason, W., Wilkins, A., Barberá, P., Brown, T., Cisneros, J. C., Crespo-Tenorio, A., Dimmery, D., Freelon, D., et al. (2024). The Effects of Facebook and Instagram on the 2020 Election: A Deactivation Experiment. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 121(21), e2321584121.
- van Agteren, J., Iasiello, M., Lo, L., Bartholomaeus, J., Kopsaftis, Z., Carey, M., & Kyrios, M. (2021). A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Psychological Interventions to Improve Mental Wellbeing. Nature Human Behaviour, 5(5), 631–652.
I hope this breakdown of the research provides useful insights into the relationship between social media and emotional wellbeing. If you're interested in more evidence-based, plain-English guides to health and wellbeing, feel free to explore more content.
– Grant
Living With Persistent Pain or Low Mood?
If you're dealing with ongoing pain that won't shift, or if you're feeling stuck and not sure where to turn, a holistic approach that considers both physical and emotional factors can make a world of difference. I offer both in-person and telehealth consultations.
