Teen stress research

Anxiety and depression are on the rise among America’s youth and, whether they personally suffer from these conditions or not, seven-in-ten teens today see them as major problems among their peers. Concern about mental health cuts across gender, racial and socio-economic lines, with roughly equal shares of teens across demographic groups saying it is a significant issue in their community.
Fewer teens, though still substantial shares, voice concern over bullying, drug addiction and alcohol consumption. More than four-in-ten say these are major problems affecting people their age in the area where they live, according to a survey of U.S. teens ages 13 to 17. When it comes to the pressures teens face, academics tops the list: 61% of teens say they feel a lot of pressure to get good grades. By comparison, about three-in-ten say they feel a lot of pressure to look good (29%) and to fit in socially (28%), while roughly one-in-five feel similarly pressured to be involved in extracurricular activities and to be good at sports (21% each). And while about half of teens see drug addiction and alcohol consumption as major problems among people their age, fewer than one-in-ten say they personally feel a lot of pressure to use drugs (4%) or to drink alcohol (6%).
Horowitz, J., & Graf, N. (2019).  Most U.S. teens see anxiety and depression as a major problem among their peers. Washington, DC: Pew Research Center.
https://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2019/02/20/most-u-s-teens-see-anxiety-and-depression-as-a-major-problem-among-their-peers/

Anxiety and Depression Associated with Technology Use

Symptoms of internet withdrawal -- increased anxiety, blood pressure and heart rate -- are close to what drug addicts experience, according to a study by researchers at Swansea University and Milan University. Participants in the study reported spending an average of five hours a day online with most of that time spent on social media sites. The findings suggest that long term utilization of ICTs as an emotional coping strategy may have a negative influence on mental health and/or exacerbate mental health predispositions.

Other key takeaways from this study include:

-       High engagement with cell phones and internet is linked with anxiety and depression.

-       Using devices to alleviate boredom is not associated with anxiety and depression.

-       Using devices for emotional coping is associated with anxiety and depression.

-       Mobile phones may provide a “security blanket effect” in anxiety-inducing situations.

-       Path of short-term stress was almost the same irrespective of coping mechanism used.

Panova, T., & Lleras, A. (2016). Avoidance or boredom: Negative mental health outcomes associated with use of information and communication technologies depend on users’ motivations. Computers in Human Behavior, 58, 249-258. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2015.12.062

Anxiety and social media study

Many studies and experts are pointing that the main reason of the increase of anxiety in our society (particularly in youth, but not only) are the uses we are making of contemporary media, in particular of social media. We are addicted to social media. (…) Many researchers coincide in pointing out that this addition to social media is not accidental, that it has been designed as part of the economic strategies of the social media platforms from their inception. The corporations running the platforms need our attention as long as possible so they can extract as much data from us as possible -and then selling this data to third parties.
Torrent, J. (2018).  Anxiety in our times. Europe Now Journal. https://www.europenowjournal.org/2018/07/01/anxiety-in-our-times/

More Cyberbullying on Instagram

Scientists from Ditch the Label, an anti-bullying charity, conducted a study to determine how social media can cause anxiety among youth. By surveying more than 10,000 people aged 12 to 20, they examined cyberbullying on Facebook, Snapchat, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram. Overall, over half of people had been sent a nasty private message and slightly less than half of people said they had a nasty comment posted on their profile. But Instagram was the most concerning. They found that slightly less than half of Instagram users had been bullied on the platform compared to a third for Facebook and Snapchat, and a tenth for YouTube and Twitter. Researchers suggest that the industry and civil society should develop a set of core values in the digital environment. They also suggested that tech companies should respond faster to online conflicts, concerns and inappropriate content. 

Ditch the Label (2017). The annual bullying survey 2017. Los Angeles, CA: Ditch the Label. https://www.ditchthelabel.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/The-Annual-Bullying-Survey-2017-1.pdf