Stressed teens benefit from coping online, but a little goes a long way


Date:
August 24, 2021
Source:
Association for Psychological Science
Summary:
An adolescent's day can be filled with a dizzying array of digital
technologies. For many teenagers, being online is a way to pass
the time and communicate with friends. Cell phones and social
media can also help teens cope with stressful events -- as long
as they strike the right balance between spending time online and
pursuing other coping activities.



FULL STORY ==========================================================================
New research published in the journal Clinical Psychological Science
reveals that teenagers (ages 13-17) in low socioeconomic settings who
spend a moderate amount of time online after a stressful experience
deal with adversity far better than those who spend many hours online
or avoid digital technology altogether.


========================================================================== "Adolescents are smart, and they make use of technology to their own
advantage.

Because adolescents in disadvantaged settings tend to have fewer
local supports, the study sought to find out whether online engagement
helped reduce their stress,'' said lead author Kathryn Modecki with
Griffith University's Menzies Health Institute and School of Applied Psychology. "There has been a tendency to assume that technology use by
teens is negative and harmful, but such a broad assumption isn't borne out
by what we know about the developmental stage of adolescence." To gather firsthand data on teens and technology, the researchers provided iPhones
to more than 200 adolescents living in low socioeconomic settings. The
teens were instructed to report on their technology use, stressors, and emotions five times a day for a week while using the iPhones exactly
as they would use personal smartphones. The data were used to compare
the emotional states of adolescents who used technology moderately, excessively, or not at all when coping with stress.

The results revealed that adolescents who engaged with technology
in moderation in the hours after a stressful situation bounced back
more readily and experienced smaller surges in negative emotions, like
sadness and worry, compared to adolescents who didn't use technology or
who routinely used technology as a coping mechanism.

"We found a just-right 'Goldilocks' effect in which moderate amounts
of online coping helped mitigate surges in negative emotions and dips
in happiness," said Modecki. "In the face of daily stressors, when
adolescents engaged in emotional support seeking, they experienced better short-term stress relief." According to the researchers, the online
space serves not just as a short-term distraction but as a resource
for adolescents to find support and information about what is troubling
them. By leveling the playing field for accessing that information and
support, this coping strategy may be especially pertinent for teens in low-income settings.

========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by
Association_for_Psychological_Science. Note: Content may be edited for
style and length.


========================================================================== Journal Reference:
1. Kathryn L. Modecki, Megan Duvenage, Bep Uink, Bonnie L. Barber,
Caroline
L. Donovan. Adolescents' Online Coping: When Less Is More but None
Is Worse. Clinical Psychological Science, 2021; 216770262110289
DOI: 10.1177/21677026211028983 ==========================================================================

Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/08/210824135308.htm

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