High-speed internet and socioemotional wellbeing in adolescence and youth

The internet has affected countless aspects of our lives, posing potential benefits and risks to people’s wellbeing. However, there is still limited evidence concerning the effects of the internet on socioemotional wellbeing in adolescence and youth, despite being a particularly vulnerable stage for mental development. This paper analyzes the causal effects of exposure to high-speed internet on socioemotional wellbeing in adolescence and youth, exploiting geographic and cross-cohort differences in fiber optic accessibility. We identify intention-to-treat effects by combining administrative data from a fiber-optic-to-the-home (FTTH) project in Uruguay with large survey data. Results show mixed effects. Going from 0 to a 100% probability in FTTH accessibility reduces the incidence of feeling lonely by 9 percentage points (pp) but increases the incidence of feeling worried by the same magnitude. We also find an increase in the probability of having a medical visit of 11 pp, without statistically significant effects in visits to a psychologist or psychiatrist. While the effect on feeling worried is widespread, the reduction in loneliness is mostly among boys and individuals with lower educational background. Dissatisfaction with their way of being and increased risky behaviors emerge as the leading mechanisms behind the detrimental effect on feeling worried.