Screen Time ExposureNCT07199660
Reactions to Social Media Warning Labels Among Teens and Young Adults
A study testing Human-developed negative body image warning, Voluntary warning and Human-developed depression and anxiety warning in people with Screen Time Exposure, run by Stanford University at 1 site in United States.
Trial summary
The primary objective of this study is to evaluate whether social media warnings are perceived as more effective than control labels among teens and young adults, and to identify the most promising topics for social media warnings for these age groups. Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 13 to 29 yearsHealthy volunteers can take part
- Conditions the study is for
- Screen Time Exposure
- What is being tested?
- Human-developed negative body image warning, Voluntary warning and Human-developed depression and anxiety warning
- Type of treatment
- Lifestyle or therapy programme
- Could I receive a placebo?
- No, everyone receives an active treatment
- How many people
- 1,012 participants
- Where
- 1 siteUnited States
- Study dates
- 2 Dec 2025to 16 Dec 2025
- Phase
- Interventional
- Are there results?
- None posted in the registry
Key requirements
Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.
- Ages 13 to 29 years
- All sexes
- Healthy volunteers accepted
- Child, Adult
Who may be able to join
- Age between 13-29 years
- Reside in the United States
- Able to complete a survey in English
- Access to the internet
Who cannot join
- Younger than 13 or older than 29 years
- Reside outside of the United States
- Unable to complete a survey in English
- Lacks access to the internet
Trial locations and contacts
1 site in 1 country.
United States1 site
Stanford School of Medicine
Palo Alto, California, 94304
About this study
Official title: An Evaluation of Social Media Warning Labels for Teens and Young Adults: A Randomized Controlled Trial
The primary objective of this study is to evaluate whether social media warnings are perceived as more effective than control labels among teens and young adults, and to identify the most promising topics for social media warnings for these age groups. A secondary objective is to compare perceived message effectiveness of warnings refined using artificial intelligence (AI) vs. those not refined using AI.
Read the detailed description
Participants will complete a within-subjects online randomized experiment in which they will view and rate messages on the risk of social media use. Participants will view messages about 9 topics: 8 warning topics and 1 control topic. The 8 warning topics include 7 potential mandatory warnings (depression and anxiety, body image, addiction, sleep, mental health harms to children, not been proven safe, and California's proposed warning) and 1 voluntary warning (similar to a message used on TikTok to encourage users to take breaks). For each topic, participants will view 1-2 messages and respond to survey items about that message. All messages will be shown in random order.
- Conditions
- Screen Time Exposure
- Being tested
- Human-developed negative body image warning, Voluntary warning, Human-developed depression and anxiety warning, Human-developed addiction warning, Human-developed sleep warning
- Keywords
- teenagers, young adults, warning labels, social media
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
Human-developed negative body image warningBehavioural
Participants will view a message about the risk of social media use contributing to negative body. The message was developed by humans without using artificial intelligence.
Voluntary warningBehavioural
Participants will view a message suggesting user take a break from scrolling on social media. The message was developed by humans without using artificial intelligence.
Human-developed depression and anxiety warningBehavioural
Participants will view a message about the risk of social media use contributing to depression and anxiety. The message was developed by humans without using artificial intelligence.
Human-developed addiction warningBehavioural
Participants will view a message warning that social media can be addictive. The message was developed by humans without using artificial intelligence.
Human-developed sleep warningBehavioural
Participants will view a message that social media use can contribute to poor sleep quality. The message was developed by humans without using artificial intelligence.
Human-developed mental health harms to young people warningBehavioural
Participants will view a message about the risk of social media use contributing to mental health harms for some young people. The message was developed by humans without using artificial intelligence.
Human-developed warning that social media has not been proven safeBehavioural
Participants will view a message warning that the use of social media has not been proven safe for young people. The message was developed by humans without using artificial intelligence.
Control messageBehavioural
Participants will view a message about encouraging seatbelt use while traveling in a vehicle.
California's proposed social media warningBehavioural
Participants will view a message warning about the harms of social media use that mirrors the language the state of California has proposed for mandatory social media warnings.
Artificial-intelligence-developed depression and anxiety warningBehavioural
Participants will view a message about the risk of social media use contributing to depression and anxiety. The message was developed using artificial intelligence.
Artificial-intelligence-developed negative body image warningBehavioural
Participants will view a message about the risk of social media use contributing to negative body. The message was developed using artificial intelligence
Artificial-intelligence-developed addiction warningBehavioural
Participants will view a message warning that social media can be addictive. The message was developed using artificial intelligence.
Artificial-intelligence-developed sleep warningBehavioural
Participants will view a message that social media use can contribute to poor sleep quality. The message was developed using artificial intelligence.
Artificial-intelligence-developed mental health harms to young people warningBehavioural
Participants will view a message about the risk of social media use contributing to mental health harms for some young people. The message was developed using artificial intelligence.
Artificial-intelligence-developed warning that social media has not been proven safeBehavioural
Participants will view a message warning that the use of social media has not been proven safe for young people. The message was developed using artificial intelligence.
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| Warning labels | Experimental | Participants view 15 messages in random order: 6 warning messages about social media developed by a team of human experts (1 each about 6 different topics), 6 warning messages about social media developed by artificial intelligence (1 each about the same 6 topics as the human-developed messages), an additional 1 warning message that mirrors the language proposed by the state of California, 1 voluntary warning message developed by human experts, and 1 control message. Receives: Behavioral: Human-developed negative body image warning; Behavioral: Voluntary warning; Behavioral: Human-developed depression and anxiety warning; Behavioral: Human-developed addiction warning; Behavioral: Human-developed sleep warning; Behavioral: Human-developed mental health harms to young people warning; Behavioral: Human-developed warning that social media has not been proven safe; Behavioral: Control message; Behavioral: California's proposed social media warning; Behavioral: Artificial-intelligence-developed depression and anxiety warning; Behavioral: Artificial-intelligence-developed negative body image warning; Behavioral: Artificial-intelligence-developed addiction warning; Behavioral: Artificial-intelligence-developed sleep warning; Behavioral: Artificial-intelligence-developed mental health harms to young people warning; Behavioral: Artificial-intelligence-developed warning that social media has not been proven safe |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Perceived message effectiveness for discouraging social media use
The study will assess perceived message effectiveness for discouraging social media use with 1 item: "How much does this message discourage you from wanting to use social media?" Response options will range from "Not at all" (coded as 1) to "A great deal" (coded as 5). Higher scores indicate higher perceived message effectiveness.
Measured: The survey will measure perceived message effectiveness immediately after participants are exposed to the message.
Secondary outcomes (1)
Awareness of the harms of social media use
The study will assess awareness of the harms of social media use with 1 item: "How much does this message increase your awareness of the harms of using social media?" Response options will range from "Not at all" (coded as 1) to "A great deal" (coded as 5). Higher scores indicate greater awareness.
Measured: The survey will measure awareness of the harms of social media use immediately after participants are exposed to the message.
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted30 Sep 2025
- Study start2 Dec 2025
- Primary completion16 Dec 2025
- Study completion16 Dec 2025
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Publications (1)Papers the sponsor has linked to this study.
- Other trials for Screen Time ExposureStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- More trials run by Stanford UniversityThe sponsor's other registered studies.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
More details
For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.
Study design
- Study type
- Interventional
- Phase
- Phase N/A
- Primary purpose
- Prevention
- Allocation
- Not applicable
- Intervention model
- Single group
- Masking
- None (open label)
- Enrolment
- 1,012 participants (actual)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- Stanford University
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Responsible party
- Principal investigator, Anna Grummon, Stanford University
- Investigators
- Anna H. Grummon, PhD, Principal investigator, Stanford School of Medicine
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT07199660
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- 81445
- Status last verified
- Mar 2026
- First submitted
- 22 Sep 2025
- Last updated
- 16 Mar 2026
- Results posted
- No
- Data monitoring committee
- No
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- No
- Individual data sharing
- Yes: Investigators will post de-identified individual participant data in a publicly available repository.
Publications
Grummon AH, Ulm C, Zeitlin AB, Hall MG, Falbe J, Kline NA, Robinson TN. Designing Social Media Health Warnings for Teenagers and Young Adults: A Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA Health Forum. 2026 Sep 4;7(9):e263014. doi: 10.1001/jamahealthforum.2026.3014.
PubMed 42696289
Study at a glance
From the registry record, last updated by the sponsor on 16 Mar 2026. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.
- Official title
- An Evaluation of Social Media Warning Labels for Teens and Young Adults: A Randomized Controlled Trial
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT07199660
- Acronym / sponsor ID
- 81445
- Conditions
- Screen Time Exposure
- Keywords
- teenagers, young adults, warning labels, social media
- Study type
- Interventional
- Recruitment status
- Completed
- Enrolment
- 1,012 participants (actual)
- Lead sponsor
- Stanford UniversityUniversity, hospital or other
- Study start
- 2 Dec 2025 (actual)
- Primary completion
- 16 Dec 2025 (actual)
- Study completion
- 16 Dec 2025 (actual)
- First posted
- 30 Sep 2025 (actual)
- Results
- Not posted in the source record
Clinical summary
The research question as the sponsor registered it. This describes what the study plans to test, not what it found.
The primary objective of this study is to evaluate whether social media warnings are perceived as more effective than control labels among teens and young adults, and to identify the most promising topics for social media warnings for these age groups. A secondary objective is to compare perceived message effectiveness of warnings refined using artificial intelligence (AI) vs. those not refined using AI.
Detailed description
Participants will complete a within-subjects online randomized experiment in which they will view and rate messages on the risk of social media use. Participants will view messages about 9 topics: 8 warning topics and 1 control topic. The 8 warning topics include 7 potential mandatory warnings (depression and anxiety, body image, addiction, sleep, mental health harms to children, not been proven safe, and California's proposed warning) and 1 voluntary warning (similar to a message used on TikTok to encourage users to take breaks). For each topic, participants will view 1-2 messages and respond to survey items about that message. All messages will be shown in random order.
Study design
- Primary purpose
- Prevention
- Allocation
- Not applicable
- Intervention model
- Single group
- Masking
- None (open label)
- Number of arms
- 1
| Arm | Type | Receives |
|---|---|---|
| Warning labels | Experimental | Behavioral: Human-developed negative body image warning, Behavioral: Voluntary warning, Behavioral: Human-developed depression and anxiety warning, Behavioral: Human-developed addiction warning, Behavioral: Human-developed sleep warning, Behavioral: Human-developed mental health harms to young people warning, Behavioral: Human-developed warning that social media has not been proven safe, Behavioral: Control message, Behavioral: California's proposed social media warning, Behavioral: Artificial-intelligence-developed depression and anxiety warning, Behavioral: Artificial-intelligence-developed negative body image warning, Behavioral: Artificial-intelligence-developed addiction warning, Behavioral: Artificial-intelligence-developed sleep warning, Behavioral: Artificial-intelligence-developed mental health harms to young people warning, Behavioral: Artificial-intelligence-developed warning that social media has not been proven safeParticipants view 15 messages in random order: 6 warning messages about social media developed by a team of human experts (1 each about 6 different topics), 6 warning messages about social media developed by artificial intelligence (1 each about the same 6 topics as the human-developed messages), an additional 1 warning message that mirrors the language proposed by the state of California, 1 voluntary warning message developed by human experts, and 1 control message. |
Who may qualify
- Ages
- 13 to 29 years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Accepted
- Age groups
- Child, Adult
Key inclusion criteria (4 listed)
- Age between 13-29 years
- Reside in the United States
- Able to complete a survey in English
- Access to the internet
Key exclusion criteria (4 listed)
- Younger than 13 or older than 29 years
- Reside outside of the United States
- Unable to complete a survey in English
- Lacks access to the internet
Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening; this overview does not establish that a patient qualifies. Full inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Interventions
| Intervention | Type | Arms |
|---|---|---|
| Human-developed negative body image warningParticipants will view a message about the risk of social media use contributing to negative body. The message was developed by humans without using artificial intelligence. | Behavioural | Warning labels |
| Voluntary warningParticipants will view a message suggesting user take a break from scrolling on social media. The message was developed by humans without using artificial intelligence. | Behavioural | Warning labels |
| Human-developed depression and anxiety warningParticipants will view a message about the risk of social media use contributing to depression and anxiety. The message was developed by humans without using artificial intelligence. | Behavioural | Warning labels |
| Human-developed addiction warningParticipants will view a message warning that social media can be addictive. The message was developed by humans without using artificial intelligence. | Behavioural | Warning labels |
| Human-developed sleep warningParticipants will view a message that social media use can contribute to poor sleep quality. The message was developed by humans without using artificial intelligence. | Behavioural | Warning labels |
| Human-developed mental health harms to young people warningParticipants will view a message about the risk of social media use contributing to mental health harms for some young people. The message was developed by humans without using artificial intelligence. | Behavioural | Warning labels |
| Human-developed warning that social media has not been proven safeParticipants will view a message warning that the use of social media has not been proven safe for young people. The message was developed by humans without using artificial intelligence. | Behavioural | Warning labels |
| Control messageParticipants will view a message about encouraging seatbelt use while traveling in a vehicle. | Behavioural | Warning labels |
| California's proposed social media warningParticipants will view a message warning about the harms of social media use that mirrors the language the state of California has proposed for mandatory social media warnings. | Behavioural | Warning labels |
| Artificial-intelligence-developed depression and anxiety warningParticipants will view a message about the risk of social media use contributing to depression and anxiety. The message was developed using artificial intelligence. | Behavioural | Warning labels |
| Artificial-intelligence-developed negative body image warningParticipants will view a message about the risk of social media use contributing to negative body. The message was developed using artificial intelligence | Behavioural | Warning labels |
| Artificial-intelligence-developed addiction warningParticipants will view a message warning that social media can be addictive. The message was developed using artificial intelligence. | Behavioural | Warning labels |
| Artificial-intelligence-developed sleep warningParticipants will view a message that social media use can contribute to poor sleep quality. The message was developed using artificial intelligence. | Behavioural | Warning labels |
| Artificial-intelligence-developed mental health harms to young people warningParticipants will view a message about the risk of social media use contributing to mental health harms for some young people. The message was developed using artificial intelligence. | Behavioural | Warning labels |
| Artificial-intelligence-developed warning that social media has not been proven safeParticipants will view a message warning that the use of social media has not been proven safe for young people. The message was developed using artificial intelligence. | Behavioural | Warning labels |
Primary outcome
Perceived message effectiveness for discouraging social media use
Time frame: The survey will measure perceived message effectiveness immediately after participants are exposed to the message.
The study will assess perceived message effectiveness for discouraging social media use with 1 item: "How much does this message discourage you from wanting to use social media?" Response options will range from "Not at all" (coded as 1) to "A great deal" (coded as 5). Higher scores indicate higher perceived message effectiveness.
1 secondary outcome
Awareness of the harms of social media use
Time frame: The survey will measure awareness of the harms of social media use immediately after participants are exposed to the message.
Results and safety
The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.
Research links
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govLast updated by the sponsor 16 Mar 2026.
- Derived from this study: PubMed 42696289Grummon AH, Ulm C, Zeitlin AB, Hall MG, Falbe J, Kline NA, Robinson TN. Designing Social Media Health Warnings for Teenagers and Young Adults: A Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA Health Forum. 2026 Sep 4;7(9):e263014. doi: 10.1001/jamahealthforum.2026.3014.
- Individual participant dataSharing planned: Yes. Investigators will post de-identified individual participant data in a publicly available repository.
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Referral and contact
AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals. Contact the study team or a site listed below; they decide who can take part. This study is not recruiting at the moment.
Anna H. Grummon, PhD principal investigator
Stanford School of Medicine
1 site in 1 country: see every site and its status.
Questions about this trial
What is this clinical trial studying?
A study testing Human-developed negative body image warning, Voluntary warning and Human-developed depression and anxiety warning in people with Screen Time Exposure, run by Stanford University at 1 site in United States.
The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.
Who may be eligible to take part?
The sponsor lists 4 inclusion and 4 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.
Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?
The record says: finished, as of the sponsor's last update on 16 Mar 2026. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.
Where is the study taking place?
The record lists 1 site in United States. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.
What are the possible benefits and risks?
They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.
Are results available for this study?
The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.
How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?
The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.
What does the primary outcome measure?
Perceived message effectiveness for discouraging social media use (time frame: The survey will measure perceived message effectiveness immediately after participants are exposed to the message.). It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.
Where can I read the original study information?
On the ClinicalTrials.gov record for NCT07199660, which also lists 1 linked publication.
Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?
No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.
How often is this information updated?
AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 16 Mar 2026.