Commentary: Teens are drawn to social media challenges – here’s how parents can get them to think twice

Meanwhile, the teenage years are linked to an increase in risk-taking. The human brain isn’t fully developed until a person reaches their mid-20s, and the parts of the brain that relate to reward and doing what feels good develop more quickly than areas linked to decision-making. As a result, teens are more likely to act impulsively and risk physical injury to gain popularity.

Teens are also particularly vulnerable to social pressure. A 2016 study found that teens were more likely to “like” a photo – even when it showed drug or alcohol use – if the photo had more “likes” from peers. The same study also showed that activity increased in the reward centers of teenage brains when viewing posts with more “likes.”

Simply put, teens pay closer attention to social media content with a high number of “likes” and views.

In best-case scenarios, this vulnerability to social pressure may result in, say, buying a certain brand of sneakers. Yet in worst-case scenarios, this can lead teens to do dangerous stunts to impress or amuse their friends.

In our work, we found that celebrities, musicians, athletes and influencers can also increase risky teen behaviors, such as alcohol and drug use, especially because they earn many “likes” and attract huge followings on social media.

Teens today may find it more difficult to resist social pressure. They not only have unlimited access to their peers and other influencers, but online social networks are also much larger, with teens following hundreds – sometimes thousands – of online users.