{"id":299025,"date":"2026-04-15T09:55:24","date_gmt":"2026-04-15T13:55:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/beta.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/?p=299025"},"modified":"2026-07-09T15:23:18","modified_gmt":"2026-07-09T19:23:18","slug":"what-parents-say-about-their-teens-uses-of-social-media","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/beta.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/internet\/2026\/04\/15\/what-parents-say-about-their-teens-uses-of-social-media\/","title":{"rendered":"What parents say about their teen\u2019s uses of social media"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
About this research<\/summary>\n

This study is Pew Research Center\u2019s latest effort to explore the landscape of teens and technology today. It focuses on social media and how the views and experiences of teens vary across sites. This study focuses on three widely used sites by teens<\/a>: TikTok, Instagram and Snapchat. And it unpacks their parents\u2019 views, too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why did we do this?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

The Center conducts research to inform the public, journalists and decision-makers. Tracking the use of social media<\/a> and understanding the experiences of teens and their parents today<\/a> have been key priorities for us over the years. This study brings those two areas together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Teens are often at the forefront of technology use, and social media sites are no different: Our December report<\/a> showed that most teens use social media. It\u2019s important to understand how social media play a role in teens\u2019 daily lives \u2013 as well as how their parents feel about it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Learn more about Pew Research Center<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How did we do this?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

We surveyed 1,458 U.S. teens and their parents online from Sept. 25 to Oct. 9, 2025. Our data collection partner Ipsos recruited the teens via their parents, who were part of its KnowledgePanel<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Findings about teens\u2019<\/strong> views and experiences represent the views of all U.S. teens ages 13 to 17 who live with their parents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Findings about parents\u2019<\/strong> views and experiences represent the views of all U.S. parents of teens ages 13 to 17.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For both teens and parents, the overall margin of error is plus or minus 3.3 percentage points. For the margin of errors of subgroups, refer to the methodology.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This research was reviewed and approved by an external institutional review board (IRB), Advarra. An IRB is an independent committee of experts that helps to protect the rights of research participants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here are the questions used for this report<\/a>, along with responses, and the survey methodology\u00ad\u00ad\u00ad<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n

Warnings about the potential harms of social media for youth<\/a> are everywhere \u2013 some even targeting specific apps<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To see if parents\u2019 outlook shift by platform, we surveyed 1,458 U.S. parents of teens ages 13 to 17.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We asked parents about how they think social media generally impact their teen. And for the first time, we followed up with their views on three widely used platforms: TikTok, Instagram and Snapchat. Here are our key questions:<\/p>\n\n\n\n