High speed internet and the widening gender gap in adolescent mental health: Evidence from Spanish hospital records

Abstract

We exploit variations in fiber optic (FTTH) deployment to assess the impact of high-speed internet access on adolescent mental health. Our findings reveal that FTTH access increases addictive Internet usage and reduces time allocated to sleep, homework, as well as social interactions with family and friends. Access to FTTH increases mental health diagnoses in hospitals and contributes to a notable rise in adolescent suicide rates, particularly among girls. As new platforms and apps gain traction among adolescents, understanding the impact of connectivity improvement becomes important. This is especially relevant given the current FTTH growth replacing older broadband technologies.