Study finds Australia's social media minimum age law had little immediate effect on adolescent usage

Summary

This observational study assessed the early impact of Australia's Social Media Minimum Age Act 2024, which set a national minimum age of 16 for holding social media accounts. Data was collected from 408 Australian adolescents (ages 12-17) before and three months after the Act's implementation. Results showed that over 85% of under-16 participants still reported using restricted social media platforms, primarily through their own accounts. While daily use decreased slightly among 14-15 year olds (78% to 69%), it remained stable for 12-13 year olds and increased for those over 16. Regression discontinuity analysis found insufficient evidence of a significant policy impact on social media use. Many adolescents reported exposure to age verification (66%), but also efforts to circumvent restrictions including fake accounts (15-19%) and private browser access (6-11%). The study concludes there is little evidence of immediate substantive reductions in social media use among under-16 adolescents.

Source

Twitter / XStudy finds Australia's social media minimum age law had little immediate effect on adolescent usagebmj.com