The more a teen watches television, the more likely they’ll become depressed later in life. That’s the finding of a new study detailed in Archives of General Psychology.
It doesn’t necessarily mean TV viewing causes depression. It may just mean people who become depressed as adults tend to watch more TV in their younger years. Excessive TV viewing may be a warning sign.
Nevertheless, the University of Pittsburgh’s Dr. Brian Primack who led the study, believes there is strong evidence that television watching contributes to the problem of depression.
The participants in his study were surveyed while in school during 1995. They were surveyed again in 2002. Those who indicated they battled depression had watched 22 more minutes of TV each day than the other participants in the survey.
The researchers speculate that TV viewing could have cut into their sleep or the time they might have spent in socializing or organized after-school activities. It could have been the shows they decided to watch were disturbing or lowered their self-esteem.
