The American Psychological Association (APA) has recommendations to help teenagers use social media safely. They suggest that teenagers learn about the effects of social media on their minds and receive ongoing guidance from adults. The APA believes that social media use should be adjusted based on the teenager’s age, with younger teenagers being supervised by adults. They also support rules to prevent harmful content like self-harm, eating disorders, discrimination, hate speech, cyberbullying, and excessive focus on beauty. They also emphasize the importance of using social media at appropriate times to avoid disrupting sleep and physical activity.

The APA recognizes that each teenager is unique, so they suggest tailoring social media rules according to their individual strengths, weaknesses, and circumstances. They call for more research on how different groups of teenagers use social media and commit to monitoring current and future research findings. They stress the need to educate teenagers about the manipulative nature of social media platforms and encourage adults to be aware of the content available to engage in meaningful conversations with teenagers.