Modeling Daily Digital Experiences in Adolescents: A Multilevel Latent Class Analysis of Social Media Engagement Patterns and Exposure to Alcohol-Related Content

Participants were 302 adolescents (Mage = 16.21) who completed 21 days of ecological momentary assessment and weekly surveys. Using multilevel latent class analysis, we identified six distinct engagement types: No Use, Passive Use, Liked/Reacted, Moderate Engagement, Discussion, and High Engagement.

Sixty-two percent of adolescents spent most days in one dominant class. Exposure to alcohol-related content from peers or followed accounts predicted more active engagement days, consistent with social learning processes. Exposure from peers was related to temporary social media disengagement, whereas exposure from followed accounts predicted reactive use.