A Six-Year Longitudinal Study of Texting Trajectories During Adolescence

This study examined growth trajectories of texting (and other media) over a 6-year time period. Participants were 425 adolescents from Washington, USA (age 13 at Time 1, age 18 at Time 6; 48% male, 68% European American). Analyses suggested a curvilinear pattern for texting and social media use, with rates peaking during midadolescence. There was also considerable heterogeneity in trajectories of texting. A growth mixture model revealed four distinct classes of individuals: perpetuals (14%), decreasers (7%), moderates (68%), and increasers (11%). Higher levels of depression, being a male, and coming from a single-parent family predicted being a perpetual texter. Perpetuals had the most problematic outcomes compared to other classes, including higher depression, anxiety, aggression, and poor relationships with fathers. The title for this Special Section is Contemporary Mobile Technology and Child and Adolescent Development, edited by Zheng Yan and Lennart Hardell