Excessive social media use linked to mental health symptoms among youths: IMH study
About 1 in 3 young people aged between 15 and 35 years in Singapore reported experiencing severe or extremely severe symptoms of depression, anxiety and/or stress.
· CNA · JoinSINGAPORE: Excessive social media use is one of three factors significantly linked to mental health symptoms among youths, according to findings from a study by the Institute of Mental Health (IMH).
Young people who spent more than three hours daily on social media were more likely to experience symptoms of depression, anxiety and/or stress, said IMH and the National Healthcare Group (NHG) in a joint media release on Thursday (Sep 19).
The other two factors linked to such symptoms are experiences with cyberbullying and having moderate to severe concerns about one’s body shape.
Body shape concerns were defined in the study as having negative body image and excessive concerns about one’s body shape that are typically associated with eating disorders.
“About 1 in 3 young people aged between 15 and 35 years in Singapore reported experiencing severe or extremely severe symptoms of depression, anxiety and/or stress,” said IMH and NHG.
“It is important to note that the severe or extremely severe mental health symptoms reported in this study do not necessarily indicate a mental disorder,” they added.
The reported results are from the first tranche of findings from the National Youth Mental Health Study which was initiated in 2022 to assess the mental health state of Singapore’s residents aged 15 to 35.
The study involved interviews with 2,600 young people between October 2022 and June 2023 and its results are representative of Singapore’s youth population, said IMH and NHG.
It was conducted in collaboration with the Ministry of Health (MOH), Centre of Excellence for Youth Mental Health and NUS Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health.
KEY FINDINGS
According to the study's results, anxiety was the most common mental health problem among Singapore’s young people, with about 27 per cent of youths reported having severe or extremely severe symptoms in the week prior to the survey.
Symptoms of anxiety include feeling worried, tense and restless most of the time.
About 1 in 7 youths reported having severe or extremely severe symptoms of depression, which included feeling sad, empty and a lack of interest and pleasure in activities most of the time.
Severe to extremely severe levels of stress were reported by 12.9 per cent of youths in Singapore. Symptoms of this include being unable to relax or feeling upset or irritable most of the time.
About 27 per cent of youths were also found to use social media excessively.
Those who did so were 1.5, 1.3 and 1.6 times more likely to have had severe or extremely severe symptoms of depression, anxiety and stress, respectively, said IMH and NHG.
Young people with moderate to severe body image concerns were 4.9, 4.3, and 4.5 times more likely to have experienced severe or extremely severe symptoms of depression, anxiety and stress, respectively.
Victims of cyberbullying were approximately twice as likely to struggle with symptoms of these mental health issues.
Associate Professor Swapna Verma, chairman of the medical board at IMH, pointed out that though not all individuals with symptoms of depression or anxiety have a clinical condition, being in such states for a prolonged period of time can be detrimental to their well-being.
“Young people today are grappling with unique issues that previous generations did not,” she said.
“Social media exposes them to constant comparisons, intensifying concerns about body image. The anonymity of the online world has also given rise to cyberbullying, which adds a new dimension of harassment that can be relentless and far-reaching.”
Associate Professor Mythily Subramaniam, assistant chairman of the medical board (research) at IMH, said the three associated factors could be linked to each other.
“The time young people spend on social media could also be related to cyberbullying and the two may either independently or together cause body shape concerns,” he said.
“Our study, like many others, shows that excessive social media use is a public health concern and has tremendous impact on youth mental health.
"It is important that young people, parents, educators pay attention to these issues, recognise signs of distress early and develop healthy boundaries.”
Providing more support to youths on the proper use of social media could help reduce its harmful impact on young people.
Interventions such as mental health education and peer support programmes can help improve resilience, self-esteem and social support, which the study found are factors associated with a lower likelihood of mental health symptoms among youths.
"WHOLE-OF-SINGAPORE" EFFORT REQUIRED
Findings from the study affirm the approach taken by the National Mental Health and Well-Being Strategy in tackling youth mental health issues, said MOH, the Ministry of Education (MOE) and the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF).
The strategy was launched by the government in October last year.
Adopting a "whole-of-government and whole-of-society" approach, it aims to improve Singapore’s mental health ecosystem.
Many of its measures are already in place while others will be progressively rolled out in the coming years, said the ministries in a joint press release on Thursday.
“Ultimately a whole-of-Singapore effort is required to tackle the multi-faceted nature of youth mental health, by de-stigmatising mental health conditions, building resilience and encouraging early help-seeking among youths.”
According to the study, protective factors, such as resilience, social support, and self-esteem, were associated with a lower likelihood of severe or extremely severe symptoms of depression, anxiety and stress among young people.
The release pointed out that in schools, Mental Health Education lessons in the Character and Citizenship Education curriculum provide students with knowledge and skills to regulate their emotions, differentiate normal stress from distress or mental illnesses and seek help when needed.
Additionally, resources to help parents will be rolled out in phases starting from this month, said the ministries.
The resources provided will “empower and equip parents with skills to build strong parent-child relationships, strengthen their children’s mental well-being and emotional resilience, and support their children’s digital journeys while keeping them safe online”, said the release.
The first phase was launched on Wednesday and covers topics such as managing screen use, addressing cyberbullying and understanding mental health and well-being.
Enhancing community support is also a key focus area of the strategy, said the ministries.
"This enables individuals with mental health needs to seek early support without stigma and receive help for their recovery."
Currently, youths can approach CHAT, a national youth mental health outreach and assessment service for young people aged 16 to 30 years old to receive mental health checks, intervention and outreach services.
“As of end-March 2024, CHAT has supported over 7,600 youths in the community at risk of mental health conditions and provided them with mental health assessments,” said MOH, MOE and MSF.
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