The influence of social media on the health of young people in particular is a discussion that has been increasingly held in recent months. Facebook, Instagram and TikTok are extremely popular. The call for responsible use is becoming increasingly louder. As a pastime, you can argue about the usefulness of social media, but there is another aspect that we should not underestimate. Social media platforms are also increasingly used by young people to search for information about their (mental) health. The question is, however, how reliable this information, which is often presented in short videos or texts, is. Researchers have put this to the test with information they could find on social media about ADHD.
ADHD (attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder) is a neurological developmental disorder. In the Netherlands, almost 353,000 people with ADHD-like symptoms were known to their GP in 2023. In childhood, the prevalence is 3.6 percent, according to figures from vzinfo, in adults it is 3.2 percent.
ADHD information on TikTok
As mentioned, social networks are also increasingly seen as a source of health information. People share their experiences there, from which others can learn. However, social media content creators often have another goal in mind. They want their video or other content to go 'viral', score millions of views and (tens of) thousands of likes. That does not always match dry, informative, not very controversial texts or images.
Content must therefore be controversial. And as a result, in social media content, especially when it concerns health, sometimes bad or unsubstantiated conclusions are drawn. For example, when recognizing ADHD symptoms. On TikTok it is claimed that procrastination can be a sign of ADHD. However, although procrastination is more common in people with ADHD, it is also something that occurs in other mental disorders such as depression and is something that everyone does sometimes.
When someone sees on TikTok that procrastination is a clear sign of ADHD, the viewer gets incomplete information and may wrongly think that he has ADHD. Videos are also being posted that show exaggerated, funny actions, such as bumping into things, as one of the ADHD symptoms, even though clumsy walking is not something that usually happens to people with ADHD.
Research
In a recently published study, two clinical psychologists who research and treat ADHD reviewed and rated the top 100 most popular #ADHD TikToks. They looked at how accurate the information was, according to professional standards, and how helpful they found the videos to be in educating people about ADHD. Many of the videos were incredibly popular, averaging more than half a million views and nearly 100,000 likes.
The psychologists found that a whopping 94 percent of these videos did not cite credible sources. In addition, more than half of the claims made in the videos were not scientifically substantiated and the information did not match official ADHD diagnostic criteria. Even more troubling, many of the videos contained a commercial message, either to sell something or to raise money.
Are young people influenced?
Subsequently, research was also conducted into the extent to which young people are influenced by such videos. For this purpose, 843 students between the ages of 18 and 25 were asked to watch the five videos that the psychologists had rated as the best and worst. The group consisted of students with ADHD (professionally diagnosed and self-diagnosed) and without ADHD.
Strikingly, or perhaps not, it is that young adults who watched more TikToks about ADHD rated their own symptoms worse and estimated the prevalence of ADHD to be up to seven times higher than reality. The videos that the psychologists had rated as the worst also received a higher reliability score from the students.
The participants were also asked at various times how certain they were that they had ADHD. This question was asked before watching the TikTok videos and immediately afterwards. The people with an official ADHD diagnosis continued to have confidence in their ADHD. However, those who initially thought they did not have ADHD became less confident after watching the TikToks, while those who self-diagnosed became more convinced that they had ADHD.
The question was then asked a third time after watching a video of a psychologist explaining which information in the videos was right and wrong. After watching the psychologist’s video, those without ADHD regained confidence that they did not actually have ADHD. However, those who self-diagnosed remained just as convinced that they had ADHD, even after hearing the psychologist’s explanation.
Advice
The researchers say that their research does not aim to discourage people from discussing their symptoms and finding a community online. “TikTok can be a great place to express yourself and find others with similar issues,” the researchers say. However, they do advise everyone to be more critical of health information they encounter on social media platforms. Some tips:
- Check the source. Is the information posted by a reputable organization (e.g., medical institutions, universities, research centers, ADHD advocates)?
- Look for expertise. What are the credentials of the content creator? Are they a medical doctor or a registered clinical psychologist?
- Verify the information. Does the information match authoritative information from other sources that rely on research, such as the Centers for Disease Control, the World Health Organization, or other medical authorities?
- Be wary of bold statements. Remember that ADHD is complex.
- Follow the money. Is the content creator trying to sell you something (such as supplements that claim to cure ADHD, ADHD coaching, ADHD diagnosis website)?
