Donated data from thousands of UK residents on their real activity across Google, YouTube, and other platforms, linked to measures of their mental health and wellbeing.

• Data Service: Smart Data Donation Service (SDDS)     
• Coverage: UK
• Time period: Since 2026
• Update frequency: Updated every three months
• Access: Secure

What it is

MOSAIC is a growing dataset of real digital behaviour, donated by members of the UK public and linked to measures of their wellbeing. It currently includes data from YouTube activity, Google Play, and related Google services. This covers what people watch, play, read, buy, and subscribe to – alongside survey data on how those same people feel. As more donors contribute and more platforms are added, this dataset builds an increasingly detailed picture of what people do online.

What makes MOSAIC unusual is the combination of real behavioural data from the platforms and services people use, linked to the same individuals’ own accounts of their mental health and wellbeing. Most research on digital life relies on what people say they do online, or on what data platforms choose to publish. MOSAIC is built from the data itself.

How researchers can use it

• Study how online behaviour differs across age groups, demographics, or over time, drawing on a nationally representative cohort.
• Test whether specific types of online activity (late-night gaming, extended video consumption, social platform use) are associated with better or worse wellbeing outcomes, using real behavioural data rather than self-reporting.
• Build and test theories about digital behaviour on data that reflects what people actually do, not what they recall or report.
• Examine how donor behaviour flows and differs across online platforms, revealing patterns that single-platform data cannot show.

How policymakers can use it

• Provide Ofcom and government with independent behavioural evidence to inform Online Safety Act implementation, rather than relying on platform-reported statistics or surveys
• Support debates and policy on children and young people’s digital wellbeing, using findings on how young people actually use online platforms. Relevant to DCMS, the Department for Education, and the Children’s Commissioner.
• Shape public health guidance and NHS mental health planning where evidence emerges linking patterns of digital life to mental health.

Illustrative case study snapshot

A psychology researcher wants to establish whether late-night mobile gaming disrupts young adults’ sleep and mood. Through MOSAIC, thousands of young donors share their real play-time logs alongside wellbeing measures, enabling the researcher to compare late-night sessions against how those same individuals report feeling. The findings can inform online safety policy and help build better guidance.

Access and availability

Secure access for approved researchers because donated data is sensitive. It is accessed in controlled conditions via the SafePod Network.

Powered by SDR UK

Data about how people behave online is largely held by private companies, and has historically been difficult for independent researchers to access at scale. MOSAIC exists because SDR UK built an alternative route. Under UK data protection law, everyone has the right to request a copy of the personal data that companies hold about them. The Smart Data Donation Service turns that legal right into a practical research tool, helping people retrieve their own data from the platforms they use and donate it for research, within a safeguarding framework. The result is a large-scale dataset of real digital behaviour that no individual research team could have assembled alone.

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Smart Data Research UK would love to hear about your research!

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