A social enterprise providing education and information to protect and enhance the mental health of young people
An increasing dependency on activities associated with the brain's excitement-pleasure circuitry is partly to blame for the rising levels of anxiety and depression in teenagers today. Prominent in this cerebral circuitry is social media. A psychiatrist speaking to a group of teachers at the beginning of the school year warned of the "anxiety tsunami" that [...]
When a new study surfaced a few weeks ago revealing that, of all the major social media networks, Instagram was the most detrimental to young people's mental health, it made alarmist news headlines around the world. But for Sydney-based online safety expert Leonie Smith, it was business as usual. "I've seen more porn, more drug [...]
With around half of the Australian population logging into Facebook on a daily basis (yes, that's 12.2 million of us), it's safe to say social media plays a large role in many of our everyday lives. Of course, while there are numerous benefits to social media use, what you get out of it corresponds rather [...]
Owning your own smartphone or tablet is now the new normal for Australian children, new research released today shows. The latest Australian Child Health Poll has found that almost all Australian teenagers, two- thirds of primary school-aged children and one-third of pre-schoolers now own their own tablet or smartphone. As well as owning their own [...]
Earlier this week, Harvard University revealed that it had rescinded admissions offers to at least 10 students who shared offensive images within what they thought was a private Facebook group chat. The students posted memes and images that mocked minority groups, child abuse, sexual assault and the Holocaust, among other things. It is easy for [...]
Four of the five most popular forms of social media harm young people’s mental health, with Instagram the most damaging, according to research by two health organisations. Instagram has the most negative impact on young people’s mental wellbeing, a survey of almost 1,500 14- to 24-year-olds found, and the health groups accused it of deepening [...]
Anyone raising a child today has likely fretted about screen time and wondered about the impact of devices on our kids. Does the technology affect their brains? Does it limit their social development? Could it harm them emotionally? Could it delay when they start talking? I had never thought about that last question until a [...]
Perhaps Facebook should carry a health warning. A study has revealed that the children who spend more time on online social networks feel less happy in almost all aspects of their lives. The research by a team of economists at the University of Sheffield, to be presented at this week’s Royal Economic Society annual conference [...]
For young adults, social media may not be so social after all. Among people in that age group, heavy use of platforms such as Facebook, Snapchat and Instagram was associated with feelings of social isolation, a study finds. The results surprised study co-author Brian Primack. "It's social media, so aren't people going to be socially [...]
Mental-health experts say there is no question that social media is becoming a platform for public suicide. The concern is that people who are planning to take their own lives can broadcast their own deaths in real time — which is not only devastating for those who die but also for those watching it happen online. Facebook said Wednesday that it is bolstering [...]
