What Do Studies Say About Snapchat and Wellbeing?

Evan Spiegel says independent studies his company did not fund or join show Snapchat has a positive impact on people's wellbeing and relationships, while TikTok and Instagram are negatively associated with wellbeing. He puts the count at maybe three or more: one out of Australia, one out of the Netherlands, and one in the US.

Snapchat is built around communication with friends and family. Relationships are the number one predictor of positive mental health outcomes and of the ability to recover from a negative depressive event, so positive outcomes for a service oriented around real friends do not surprise him. A challenge is getting people to understand Snapchat's role as a communications service and not lump it in with social media.

Independent research continues to show that concerns about overuse of technology are warranted, which is why a healthy balance is important. Plenty of studies from the days of television associated watching too much television with negative health outcomes, and too much of a good thing can go too far.