Cover Story: The Digital Middle

I’m honored that my research journey, which began with UCSB’s Grad Slam competition, was recently featured in the cover story of UCSB Magazine: “The Digital Middle: A Search for Balance in a Screen-Based World.”

The feature, written by Keith Hamm with photos by Matt Perko, explores the complicated, and often misunderstood, relationship between smartphones, social media, and adolescent well-being. Together with UCSB Communication faculty, I spoke about how fears around new technologies are not new. From “reading fever” in the 1700s, to radio, television, video games, and now social media, history shows us that every new medium sparks moral panic.

In the article, I discussed why it’s important to move beyond panic and instead ask: when is media use harmful, and when can it be helpful? Research suggests that for some adolescents, underlying mental health challenges can drive compulsive relationships with digital media. But for others, these same tools can support learning, creativity, and connection.

The story captures an important message: our challenge isn’t eliminating screens, but finding healthier, balanced ways to integrate them into our lives.

📖 You can read the full feature here: