Self-diagnosis in the age of social media: A pilot study of youth entering mental health treatment for mood and anxiety disorders

Aim: To understand young adult patients' perspectives around the importance of mental health diagnoses and use of online material to self-diagnose. Methods: Prior to first appointment with a clinician, 57 patients at First Episode Mood and Anxiety Program answered questions about viewing mental health content online. They were asked their opinions regarding the importance of a diagnosis and if they believed they had a diagnosis not previously given by a clinician. Participants also completed the Social Media Engagement Scale for Adolescents (SMES-A). Results: All participants reported viewing mental health content online, and social media sites were more commonly viewed than academically-oriented sites. Value placed on diagnosis was correlated with frequency of viewing mental health content online. Most patients reported believing they had diagnoses that were not previously given by a clinician (i.e., a self-diagnosis). Of these, most indicated social media contributed to this belief. Self-diagnosis was correlated with frequency of viewing mental health content on YouTube as well as score on the SMES-A. Conclusions: Young adults seeking mental healthcare indicated that information gleaned from social media was often used to self-diagnose. A diagnosis was found to be important for youth seeking mental health treatment and social media use appeared to be an associated factor. This research highlights attitudes about social media and diagnosis in youth entering mental health treatment.