An Analysis of Pastoral Teaching Staff's Views of the Impact of Students' Social Media Use on their Wellbeing

Abstract

Social media platforms and applications have significantly expanded over the last twenty years. Their use has been associated with depression, self-harm, and an increased risk of suicide. This could be due to both the displacement of offline activities and the propensity for upward social comparison facilitated by these platforms. Social media platforms can also facilitate communication and increase feelings of connectedness. Most research is correlational, making it difficult to infer causation, and studies frequently utilise self-report methods which may be influenced by social desirability bias or limited selfawareness amongst adolescents. Pastoral staff are in a unique position to observe changes in students’ behaviour and wellbeing over time due to their role within schools and their involvement with safeguarding, behaviour, and emotional support. This research aimed to investigate the impact of social media use on adolescents’ mental health and wellbeing, as perceived by pastoral staff in UK secondary schools. The research was conducted in two phases. First, a scoping review was conducted following PRISMA guidelines to analyse available research exploring pastoral perspectives on the effects of social media on adolescents’ mental health and wellbeing. Four papers were retrieved, highlighting a significant gap in the literature. Existing evidence is heavily weighted toward either student self-reporting or clinical diagnostic data, with limited research focusing specifically on pastoral staff perspectives in the UK. Available studies mainly focused on issues such as bullying and self-image. Secondly, semi-structured interviews were conducted with twenty pastoral staff working in UK secondary schools. The data was recorded and transcribed using OtterAI and analysed thematically using NVivo. The three main overarching themes identified were negative perceptions of oneself, bullying, and support given and received.
The Displacement Hypothesis could explain some of the findings relating to changes in social relationships and mental health, whilst Social Comparison Theory could account for negative perceptions of oneself, such as low self-esteem and poor body image. Pastoral staff reported considerable frustration in dealing with these issues, as they believed many of them could be preventable. The main recommendations from staff were for parents to take greater responsibility for their children’s behaviour on social media platforms, for social media companies to implement changes such as stricter age restrictions and altered app features,
and for increased funding so that more preventative work can be completed in schools. These findings are critically discussed in the thesis.

Date of Award	23 Jun 2026
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	University of Portsmouth
Supervisor	Jessica Massonnie (Supervisor) & Laura Hyman (Supervisor)