Italian study links early social media use to lasting academic setbacks and social divides

Research from the University of Milano-Bicocca reveals that children who access social media before age 12 perform worse in language and maths, with impacts persisting into higher grades and highlighting social inequalities.

Italian researchers have added fresh evidence to a long-running parental debate over when children should be allowed on TikTok or Instagram. A study from the University of Milano-Bicocca, published in Nature Human Behaviour and reported by Newsweek, found that early access to social media and smartphones is linked to weaker school performance, particularly in language and mathematics.

The EYES UP project tracked 6,609 students in Lombardy and compared their digital habits with exam results in Italian, maths and English. According to the university’s summary, pupils who started using social media before the age of 12 scored lower than classmates who waited until 14, with the gap equivalent to roughly six months of learning in language and maths. The effect did not disappear over time and, in maths, widened by tenth grade. English was the only subject that showed no clear impact.

Researchers said the most likely explanation is attention fragmentation: frequent notifications, endless scrolling and the habit of checking a phone every minute can make sustained concentration harder. The study also suggested the harm was stronger among boys and that children from less-educated households tended to gain access to digital devices earlier, pointing to a social divide in screen exposure.

Chiara Respi, one of the study’s authors, said the best age for a first account is 13 to 14, but the researchers also argued that rules alone are not enough. They recommended screen-free family routines at mealtimes and during rest, more discussion about how digital noise affects the brain and more face-to-face interaction, which they said does more to build critical thinking than social media ever can.