A new study has revealed that those born in the 90s have the worst mental health among generations, and millennials aren’t seeing improvement with age.
Researchers at The University of Sydney discovered a significant decline in the mental well-being of each consecutive generation since the 1950s.
The study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences on Tuesday, revealed that mental health challenges are not only more severe for younger generations but are also affecting each generation as it approaches old age.
“Much of the focus to date has been on the declining mental health of school-aged children and adolescents, where we expect their mental health to eventually improve as they enter adulthood. But this study shows this pattern is changing and that it is not just the kids we need to worry about,” said lead author Dr Richard Morris.
Our data not only shows a continuing decline in the mental health of the current crop of young people but continues to affect older generations today heading into their 40s and 50s. We are not seeing the rebound out of young adulthood that previous generations saw as they aged.
The study aims to understand the decline in Australians‘ mental health since 2010, focusing on whether it’s a concern limited to the “post-millennium cohort” or part of a lasting trend.
Over 27,500 Australians from 2001 to 2020 were monitored, revealing that the youngest generations are experiencing the most severe mental health challenges.
Contrary to older generations, individuals born in the 1990s are not experiencing an improvement in their mental health as they age.
“Population-level trends in mental health have been declining in developed nations for many years, especially among young people,” the study states.
“The findings from this study highlight that it is the poorer mental health of Millennials that is driving the apparent deterioration in population-level mental health.”
Social media has been identified as a key factor contributing to the decline in the country’s mental health.
Experts have criticized social media and excessive screen time for causing anxiety, depression, and addiction in younger generations.
The study also suggests that climate change, lack of physical activity, poor sleep, and evolving work patterns contribute to the decline in optimism among the youth.
While the future trends for Gen Z and Gen Alpha remain uncertain, researchers at the University of Sydney aren’t getting their hopes up.
“This represents important evidence that declines in mental health among young adults may not be expected to spontaneously recover or disappear,” they said.
