Study explores why teens self-diagnose mental health conditions through TikTok content

New research delves into the psychological factors, including identity and belonging, that drive adolescents to self-diagnose mental health conditions after engaging with TikTok content, offering fresh perspectives on this growing trend.

Study: TikTok-inspired self-diagnosis and its implications for educational psychology practice. Image Credit: PeopleImages.com – Yuri A/Shutterstock.com

In a recent review article published in Educational Psychology in Practice, researchers explored the phenomenon of young people self-diagnosing with mental health or neurodevelopmental conditions after interacting with social media content.

Their conclusions highlight the complex reasons for self-diagnosis and the systemic barriers that limit access to proper support for young people.

Self-diagnosis on social media apps

Since 2021, a popular social media app with 1.7 billion users that allows users to engage with short videos has appeared in the news as young people use its content to self-diagnose mental health conditions. Self-diagnosis involves identifying with medical conditions without professional diagnoses.

The app’s content has been shown to influence self-diagnosis, particularly for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and autism. Algorithms used by the platform personalize content, potentially creating echo chambers and reinforcing existing beliefs through confirmation bias.

However, content on mental health and neurodiversity on social media varies in accuracy, with many videos spreading misinformation. Overgeneralized or inaccurate content can mislead users about mental health conditions, or romanticize or glamorize neurodiversity, minimizing real challenges.

Researchers are concerned about the effects of misleading or incorrect information on young people. While some argue that the trend in self-diagnosis results from misunderstandings and social contagion, others note that this ignores systemic barriers to healthcare and the natural exploration of identity during adolescence.

Why young people self-diagnose

From a neuroscientific perspective, adolescents tend to value peer opinions, such as those they engage with through social media, over those of adults. Risk-taking behavior also increases during adolescence as the brain develops.

Adolescents may have weaker risk assessment abilities but a heightened response to rewards in the form of social approval, such as ‘likes’ or ‘comments’ on social media.

Theories of psychosocial development note that adolescence is a time when identity is formed by exploring different roles, with confusion arising if exploration is limited.

Social media offers platforms where young people can experiment with identity and receive feedback that shapes this project. Movements like neurodiversity, which celebrate neurological differences, influence modern identity development.

Adolescents may also use social media content to compare themselves to others and categorize themselves into social groups. As they commit to these groups, belonging provides a sense of identity and support. Young people may fear being ‘disconfirmed’ by healthcare professionals, which could discourage them from seeking formal diagnoses.

While adolescents want to belong to social groups, they also want to be unique. One theory says that identifying with mental health or neurodivergent conditions can provide a balance between uniqueness and belonging, with social media amplifying these desires since users can gain attention through these identities.

Identity theory notes that identity is linked to roles. Once a role is established, individuals may feel pressured to maintain it, and social media can make self-disclosure feel more permanent, reducing the flexibility young people have to explore or change roles.

Many adolescents explore their identities online first before discussing them with close family or friends, as social interactions shape identity.

Reducing stigma towards mental health can be beneficial, leading to more self-diagnosis and positive societal shifts as acceptance and awareness of mental health issues increase. The negative portrayals of self-diagnosis in the media, however, can increase stigma.

Systemic and financial barriers to diagnosis

In response to a media story about the ‘self-diagnosis trend,’ a well-known social media personality with autism argued that rising diagnoses of autism and ADHD could be attributed to improved diagnostic accuracy and better awareness. In the comments, many people shared their personal experiences of how systemic and financial barriers to formal diagnosis.

In the United Kingdom, waiting lists can delay diagnosis for conditions like ADHD and autism, with waiting times ranging from 40 weeks to two years. Referrals for children and adolescents can take up to four years. However, many people are unable to afford private healthcare, leaving them dependent on long waiting times for public healthcare.

In the United States, Black children are more likely to receive incorrect diagnoses than White children, being told that they have conduct disorder rather than ADHD. It is also well-documented that girls are diagnosed with ADHD and autism later than boys, and often less accurately.

There are effective barriers, too, as mistrust in healthcare and fear of stigma can prevent young people from seeking help. Young people may avoid diagnosis, fearing that it will not change their situation or be a traumatic experience.

Conclusions

Misleading and inaccurate mental health content on social media can be harmful to young people, pointing to the need for more accredited professionals on these platforms to counterbalance misinformation.

Self-diagnosis may arise from limited access to formal healthcare and provide support and community. Further research into self-diagnosis is essential and should integrate the perspectives of young people, parents, and school staff.