The research library
What the studies say
Studies on phones, social media, sleep and focus, each explained in plain English: what the researchers did, what they found and what it means for you.
Mood and mental health11 studies
- Randomized trialA One-Week Break From Social Media: What a Randomized Trial Found
- Cohort studyA Week Off Social Media for Young Adults: What a 2025 Study Found
- Randomized trialA Week Off Social Media Improved Body Image in Young Women
- Meta-analysisCutting Back on Social Media and Depression: What 10 Trials Found
- Randomized trialDoes a Phone on the Table Ruin a Meal With Friends?
- Meta-analysisDoes a Social Media Detox Make You Happier? What 20 Trials Found
- Cohort studyDoes Scrolling Make You Feel Worse? A Two-Week Text Message Study
- Randomized trialFourteen Days Without Social Media: What an Experiment Found
- Randomized trialPaid to Quit Facebook: What a Month Away Changed
- Randomized trialPhone Diet vs Social Media Diet: What an 8-Day Experiment Found
- Randomized trialSocial Media at 30 Minutes a Day: What a Penn Trial Found
Focus and attention12 studies
- Randomized trialBatching Phone Notifications: What a Two-Week Experiment Found
- Meta-analysisCan You Guess Your Own Screen Time? What the Research Found
- ExperimentDoes a Switched-Off Phone Still Cost You Focus? A 2023 Study
- Cross-sectional studyHeavy Media Multitaskers and Distraction: The 2009 Stanford Study
- Cross-sectional studyMedia Multitasking and Attention: What a 924-Person Study Found
- ExperimentOne Hour Less a Day, or a Week Off? The Smartphone 'Sweet Spot' Study
- ExperimentPhone Notifications and Focus: What a 2015 Lab Study Found
- Cross-sectional studyScroll Immersion and Short-Form Video: A Survey of 745 Users
- Meta-analysisShort-Form Video and Attention: A Meta-Analysis of 71 Studies
- Randomized trialTen Small Phone Changes That Cut Screen Time: What a Trial Found
- ExperimentThe Brain Drain Study: Does a Nearby Phone Cost You Focus?
- Randomized trialTwo Weeks Without Mobile Internet: What a Randomized Trial Found
