Study Finds ADHD Content on TikTok Is Less Than 50 Percent Accurate

ProCon Debates: Should TikTok Be Banned?; Is Social Media Good for Society?

ProCon Issue in the News: When it comes to mental health issues, young people are increasingly calling “Dr. TikTok,” and turning to social media in general, for help.

Self-diagnosing for mental health conditions such as attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism, borderline personality disorder, dissociative identity disorder, and obsessive-compulsive disorder is nearly always ill-advised. And now a new study published in PLOS One has concluded that less than 50 percent of the content found on TikTok under the #ADHD hashtag is accurate, underlining the danger of relying on social media for medical advice.

The study’s researchers first asked two clinical psychologists with ADHD expertise to examine the top 100 #ADHD TikTok videos from January 2023. The psychologists found that fewer than 50 percent of the claims made in those videos aligned with the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders.

The second part of the study asked 843 undergraduate students how often they viewed videos with #ADHD content. Researchers found that the more students watched the videos, not only were they more likely to recommend the videos to others, but the students were also more likely to assume “a higher prevalence of ADHD in the general population and greater challenges faced by those with ADHD.”

Researchers then asked the undergraduates to rate the top five and bottom five psychologist-rated videos from the first part of the study. Although the students did rate the top five videos as more worthy of sharing, the students also viewed those same videos less favorably when compared with the psychologists’ ratings and viewed the bottom five videos more favorably, demonstrating a disparity between mental health professionals and young adults when it comes to the value of #ADHD content. The study also found that students with a self-diagnosis gave higher scores to the bottom five videos when compared with the scores from the participants with a formal diagnosis.

Such misinformation and misconceptions spurred by social media are troubling, though the researchers were also careful to acknowledge the benefits provided by social media:

Nonetheless, it is crucial to acknowledge that social media helps people to tell their own stories and through that, find a supportive community. The users who may benefit most from seeing #ADHD TikTok videos are possibly those living with ADHD who are socially isolated, experience internalized or societal stigma about their condition, have been historically excluded from ADHD research, and lack access to treatment….The value that some users gain from watching TikTok videos, and why they seek them out, may be entirely unrelated to their scientific accuracy as judged by professionals. Thus, benefits to those users in terms of well-being—via destigmatization, feeling “seen” or understood—could be genuine.

Still, as journalist Ali Shehab explains, these videos “often lack nuance, reducing these conditions to catchy soundbites,” which “can create a confirmation bias loop in which users interpret normal emotional experiences as signs of a disorder.” As he concludes,

While TikTok has democratized mental health discussions, it’s no substitute for professional diagnosis and treatment. By fostering digital literacy and critical thinking, we can help Gen Z navigate the platform’s pitfalls—and harness its potential for good.

Discussion Questions

• Should mental health content on social media be moderated by experts? Why or why not?
• Which is more important in a social media video about mental health: accurate medical information or content that helps people personally and socially cope with their condition? Explain your answer.
• How do you identify inaccurate or misleading information on social media? Research and discuss techniques for doing so.

Sources

• Vasileia Karasavva et al., “A Double-Edged Hashtag: Evaluation of #ADHD-Related TikTok Content and Its Associations with Perceptions of ADHD” (March 19, 2025), journals.plos.org
• Ali Shehab, “TikTok Therapy: How the Gen Z Trend Is Reshaping Mental Health” (March 12, 2025), psychologytoday.com
• Russ Bahorsky, “Calling Dr. TikTok: Experts Weigh In on an Alarming Social-Media Trend” (November–December 2022), give.as.virginia.edu