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During the LEARN! Seminar on September 17, Prof. Gonneke Stevens presented findings from the Health Behavior in School-Aged Children (HBSC) study, which has tracked adolescent health and well-being since 1983. Now encompassing over 50 countries, the study surveys adolescents aged 11-15 every four years, focusing on mental health, substance use, social media, and relationships within their social contexts. Each country contributes national data, allowing for both core and context-specific insights.
One key finding is that adolescents attending schools with higher average socioeconomic status (SES) report more psychological symptoms, particularly those from lower SES families (Brons et al., 2024). Another study linked higher SES schools to increased hyperactivity and inattention (Brons et al., 2023), possibly due to greater academic pressure. Since 2010, mental health issues, particularly among girls, have risen significantly, with a sharper increase observed between 2018-2022, likely influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic (Cosma et al., 2024). This period also saw a widening gender gap in psychological complaints (De Looze et al., 2024; Stevens et al., 2024).
Social media use was another area of focus. While problematic social media use remains relatively low, its intensity has increased, especially among girls. Problematic use is linked to internalizing problems (Boer et al., 2020), though the Netherlands reports lower levels of problematic use compared to other countries. This suggests that other factors beyond social media are contributing to the decline in adolescent mental health.
An important hypothesis explored was the "prevalence inflation hypothesis," which suggests that rising mental health issues may be due in part to increased awareness and overinterpretation. Additionally, findings indicated that the gender gap in psychological complaints is wider in more gender-equal countries (De Looze et al., in press), though this is likely due to complex factors beyond gender equality measures. Overall, the HBSC study highlights the importance of considering both individual and contextual factors, such as school and national environments, when addressing adolescent mental health. The rising mental health concerns, particularly among girls, require further investigation into the complex interplay of societal processes.
