Using BERT to Understand TikTok Users’ ADHD Discussion

Abstract

The rapid rise in popularity of the social media platform TikTok has allowed information to reach a wider audience at a faster rate compared to traditional news outlets. With this growth, more young people are connected with each other, allowing discussion on issues of mental health, a once stigmatized topic, to grow among young people. However, not all information about mental health issues is done properly or accurately. A commonly discussed mental health issue on TikTok is Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, known as ADHD. In this paper, we briefly describe how ADHD is portrayed on TikTok. Then, we analyze ADHD discussion around themes of self-diagnosis, symptoms, and self-help through text analysis using BERT. We analyze the common responses to ADHD TikToks and set up a multi-label classifier to understand the general range of responses.