DAK Study 2026: What the New Social Media Addiction Numbers Mean

350,000 Children With Problematic Social Media Use

You're scrolling through your feed and see the headline: "Millions of children have problems due to media consumption." Your first impulse – to confiscate your child's smartphone immediately. But before you act, it's worth taking a closer look at the numbers. Because the new DAK media addiction study paints a nuanced picture – and reveals where the real dangers lie.

The seventh wave of the longitudinal study, conducted by the German Center for Addiction Issues in Childhood and Adolescence (DZSKJ) at the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, was published in March 2025¹. The results are alarming – but they also show where families can make a difference.

The Key Numbers at a Glance

The study, led by Prof. Dr. Rainer Thomasius, surveyed around 1,000 families with children between the ages of 10 and 17¹. The core findings:

6.6 percent of 10- to 17-year-olds show pathological social media use – equivalent to approximately 350,000 children and adolescents in Germany
21.5 percent use social media at a risky level – about 1.1 million young people
Over 25 percent in total – more than one in four children – show problematic social media use

Particularly concerning is the increase: compared to the 2024 survey, pathological use has risen by 40 percent – from 4.7 to 6.6 percent. This means the problem is not stabilizing but continuing to worsen.

Older Teenagers Are More Affected

The study reveals clear age-related differences:

Ages 10 to 13: 2.7 percent pathological
Ages 14 to 17: 10.0 percent pathological – nearly one in ten in this age group

This jump at the transition to adolescence is no coincidence. At 14, many teenagers begin using social media more intensively – often without the self-regulation skills needed to manage it.

The Underestimated Danger: Video Addiction

One finding from the study deserves special attention: the massive increase in problematic video consumption.

Risky video use: From 13.4 percent (2024) to 21.4 percent (2026) – an increase of 60 percent
Pathological video use: From 2.6 to approximately 4 percent

Why videos specifically? The answer lies in the technology: platforms like TikTok, Instagram Reels, and YouTube Shorts use autoplay features and algorithmic infinite loops. There is no natural stopping point – the next clip starts automatically before the previous one has been properly processed. For children and teenagers whose impulse control is still developing, this makes these formats particularly difficult to regulate.

What "Pathological" and "Risky" Mean

The terms sound dramatic, and it's important to put them in proper context:

Risky use means: the child shows initial signs of a problematic relationship with social media – such as frequently reaching for the smartphone without a specific reason, restlessness without access, or increasing usage duration
Pathological use is based on the World Health Organization's (WHO) criteria for behavioral addictions in the ICD-11²: impaired control, increasing prioritization over other activities, and continuation despite negative consequences – over a period of at least twelve months

Risky use is not yet addiction – but it is a serious warning sign that calls for action.

Recognizing Warning Signs: When Does It Become Problematic?

The line between normal media use and problematic behavior is fluid. The DAK study and experts from the DZSKJ identify several warning signs¹:

Loss of control: Your child can no longer limit their own use, regularly exceeding agreed-upon times by large margins
Withdrawal symptoms: Irritability, moodiness, or sadness when access to social media is restricted
Neglect of other areas: School performance drops, friendships suffer, hobbies are abandoned
Physical complaints: Headaches, back pain, sleep deprivation due to nighttime use
Escalation: Increasingly more time is needed to achieve the same sense of satisfaction

Prof. Thomasius emphasizes a "visible connection to psychological distress such as depression" among affected children and adolescents. If you observe several of these signs in your child, it's a clear indication that you should take action.

What Parents Can Do Now

The good news: you are not powerless. The study identifies a problem – but it also shows that prevention works. Here are concrete steps you can take as a family:

Create Transparency Instead of Control

The first step is often the hardest: an open conversation about media use. Not as an accusation, but as a joint assessment.

Keep a media diary: For one week, all family members document their screen time – including you as parents
Use dashboards: Tools like FamFlow make screen time visible without surveillance. Your child sees for themselves how much time they spend on which platforms – and can make independent decisions

Establish Rules Together

Research from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) shows that rules children help develop are followed more consistently than unilateral restrictions³.

Time budgets instead of rigid limits: A weekly allowance gives your child more autonomy in managing their time
Screen-free zones: No smartphone during meals, no devices in the bedroom until a certain age
Create a family media agreement: Put the rules in writing – this creates accountability for everyone

Strengthen Alternatives

The DAK study shows that children with a diverse range of leisure activities are less susceptible to problematic media use. Sports clubs, creative projects, and regular meet-ups with friends create a counterbalance to the digital world.

Educate About Algorithms

Explain to your child how the platforms work. Teenagers who understand that an algorithm is deliberately designed to keep them scrolling can more consciously resist this manipulation. Common Sense Media offers age-appropriate materials on this topic⁴.

When Professional Help Makes Sense

With pathological use – meaning your child has permanently lost control over their usage behavior and other areas of life are suffering – family rules alone may no longer be sufficient.

Counseling services: Organizations like Common Sense Media and the AAP offer resources and guidance for affected families³
Child and adolescent psychiatry: If a manifest behavioral disorder is suspected, a specialist evaluation can provide clarity
Media education counseling: Many family counseling centers now offer specific media-related advice

The threshold for professional help should not be set too high. The earlier a problematic development is identified, the better it can be corrected.

A Positive Finding: Gaming Addiction in Decline

Not all news from the study is negative. Gaming addiction shows a decline: pathological gaming use dropped from 4.3 percent (2023) to 3.4 percent. Risky use stands at 12 percent.

This suggests that societal attention to the issue is having an effect – and that a turnaround is also possible for social media if parents, schools, and policymakers act together.

Conclusion: Awareness Over Panic

The DAK Study 2026 provides no reason for panic – but very good reason for heightened awareness. When more than one in four children use social media problematically and the numbers continue to rise, that is a signal families should take seriously.

The most important insight: bans alone do not solve the problem. What children need is guidance, transparency, and the ability to self-regulate. With FamFlow, that is exactly what we focus on – helping families make screen time visible and shape it together, rather than controlling it.

Talk to your child. Not about the study, but about their experiences with social media. What do they do there? What do they enjoy? What stresses them out? That conversation is the first and most important step – everything else follows from it.

DAK-Gesundheit / DZSKJ – "Addiction Study: Millions of Children Have Problems Due to Media Consumption," Results Report 7th Wave, March 2025: dak.de/presse/bundesthemen/kinder-jugendgesundheit/dak-suchtstudie ↩ ↩² ↩³
WHO – Gaming Disorder, ICD-11 Classification: who.int/standards/classifications/gaming-disorder ↩
American Academy of Pediatrics – Family Media Plan: healthychildren.org/English/fmp ↩ ↩²
Common Sense Media – Social Media and Kids: commonsensemedia.org ↩