TOKYO - Japanese 15-year-olds spend an average of 2.3 hours browsing social media during their weekday free time, the shortest amount among 24 countries surveyed, according to data from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.
The findings draw on the OECD's Programme for International Student Assessment, or PISA, which assesses the knowledge, skills and learning environment of 15-year-olds across participating countries and economies.
Japanese respondents reported spending an average of 2.3 hours browsing social media during their leisure time on weekdays, the lowest figure among the 24 countries that provided comparable responses.
On weekends and holidays, the average rose to 2.9 hours, placing Japan 20th among the countries surveyed.
Separate OECD analysis based on PISA 2022 data shows that, when browsing, communicating and sharing content are combined, 15-year-olds across OECD countries spend almost 35 hours a week on social media on average. Japan recorded less than 26 hours a week, the lowest level cited in the OECD report, while teenagers in Chile spent more than 45 hours a week.
The OECD said social media has become nearly universal among teenagers. About 95% of 15-year-olds across OECD countries reported browsing social media every day, while 88% said they regularly used the platforms to communicate or share digital content.
The data also showed differences between boys and girls. Across OECD countries, girls spent an average of 37.2 hours a week on social media, compared with 31.8 hours for boys. The OECD said browsing social media was the most common digital leisure activity among girls, while boys tended to spend more time playing video games.
Socioeconomic background was also linked to usage. Girls from the lowest socioeconomic quartile spent about eight hours more per week on social media than girls from the highest quartile, while the difference among boys was about five hours.
The OECD found that the relationship between social media use and academic performance was not simply a matter of less use being better. Mathematics scores were highest among students who used social media moderately, while both non-users and very heavy users tended to perform less well.
Performance declined more consistently once social media use exceeded about three hours a day, according to the OECD analysis.
The organization also found a similar pattern in creative thinking. Scores tended to peak among students who spent between one and three hours a day browsing social media, while heavier use was associated with weaker performance.
The OECD cautioned that the results show associations rather than proof that social media use directly causes higher or lower academic performance.
The findings also highlighted differences in students' social lives. Teenagers who met friends frequently in person tended to spend more time on social media as well, suggesting that online interaction often complements rather than replaces face-to-face contact.
At the same time, students who reported feeling lonely or isolated at school also tended to use social media more, leading the OECD to warn that online activity can in some cases reinforce existing feelings of social isolation.
Japan also stood out for its comparatively limited use of digital technology for education. The survey found that Japanese students used artificial intelligence for school studies less frequently than students in any other OECD member country.
More broadly, OECD data indicate that Japan has one of the lowest levels of preparedness for digital learning among participating countries and economies, despite its strong academic performance.
Japan ranked among the highest-performing education systems in PISA 2022. Japanese 15-year-olds scored an average of 536 points in mathematics, compared with an OECD average of 472, while their average reading score was 516 against an OECD average of 476. In science, Japan scored 547, compared with the OECD average of 485.
The PISA 2022 assessment covered about 690,000 students worldwide, representing roughly 29 million 15-year-olds in 81 participating countries and economies. In Japan, 5,760 students from 182 schools participated, representing an estimated 1.02 million 15-year-olds.
Source: テレ東BIZ
