Symposia
Transdiagnostic
Ashley A. Knapp, M.A., Ph.D.
Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
Chicago, Illinois
Ashley Walker, MS
Gradate Student
Northwestern University
Chicago, Illinois
Emily Hersch, MA
Senior Research Assistant
Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
New York, New York
Anny Yang, Undergraduate
Undergraduate Research Assistant
Northwestern University
Chicago, Illinois
Clarisa Wijaya, PhD
Graduate Student
Northwestern University
Chicago, Illinois
Deepika Kour Sodhi, MD
Research Volunteer
Northwestern University
Chicago, Illinois
Madhu Reddy, PhD
Professor, Associate Dean
University of California, Irvine
Irvine, California
Introduction: Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, anxiety disorders were already the most common disorder during adolescence and their anxiety symptoms have only worsened since the onset of COVID-19. The pandemic especially disrupted adolescent’s education, interpersonal relationships, and family interactions. For example, adolescents had to learn remotely, recalibrate their in-person relationships, and remain at home for an indefinite period. Thus, it is key to understand how youth navigated their pandemic experience and the tools they used to support their mental health. We used the research method of asynchronous remote communities (ARC) to engage adolescents remotely in a focus group format. ARC methods allow for broader recruitment and the construction of more diverse samples than in-person activities.
Methods: We used the ARC method to remotely convene a diverse (with reference to race, ethnicity, LGBTQIA+ status, SES, and disability), nation-wide group of 26 adolescents aged 13-17 years (M = 15.7; SD = 1.2). For combined race and ethnicity, 38% of adolescents identified as Black, 31% as Asian, 23% as Hispanic, 19% as White, 4% as Middle Eastern, and 4% as Native American. For 15 days, we asked adolescents to log on to the secure platform, FocusGroupIt, to respond to questions on their mental health, lived experiences during the pandemic, and tools that would be helpful for their mental well-being, as well as to respond to other adolescents’ responses. Direct content analysis was used to analyze the data.
Results: Participants discussed their loathing of online schooling, some failing classes (for the first time) and struggling with their mental health, while others mentioned the difficulty of remote learning in the same room as their working parents. Adolescents considered music, journaling, meditation, social media, and videogames as most helpful for managing their anxiety. When asked about their preferences for digital mental health (DMH) services, adolescents preferred a “toolbox” approach where several types of support are offered to fit diverse mental health needs (vs. one-size-fits all approach), prioritizing features of accessibility (low/no-cost) and teen-centric design.
Conclusions: Feedback from adolescents confirmed the news headlines that “our teens are not ok”. Adolescents did, however, express ways in which they looked to improve their mental well-being. DMH service designers should prioritize accessibility, teen-centric design, and a “toolbox” approach in offering several types of services.