A new survey released this week gives a preliminary glimpse at the toll all of those changes has taken on teenagers’ mental health — and it raises an early alarm.
Of roughly 1,500 teenagers who took part in the survey, conducted by Harris Poll on behalf of the National 4-H Council in May, 7 out of 10 teenagers said they were struggling with their mental health in some way.
“It is clear to us based on the survey findings that COVID-19 has had a measurable adverse impact on teens’ mental health,” Jennifer Sirangelo, president and CEO of 4-H, told HuffPost.
One notable finding from the survey is that teens reported spending at least nine hours a day on screens during the pandemic, an increase of at least three hours per day.
Children’s mental health experts are generally quick to point out how emotionally resilient most kids are, and the survey found something similar: Nearly 70% of the teenagers surveyed said they consider themselves resilient.
