Both factors were associated with higher levels of life satisfaction and optimism and lower levels of anxiety and frustration, the study said. The study says longer screen time was particularly detrimental for girls, as researchers saw a “significantly clearer” connection between longer screen time and poor mental health.
But it’s not healthy for both sexes: screen time that exceeded the recommended two-hour limit is still significantly associated with lower satisfaction and optimism between boys and girls, the chairman said.
O’Brien also noted that due to the epidemic, finding extraordinary activities is not as easy as it once was. Still, it’s important for teens to find something safe to do, he said.
“Our findings highlight outside activities as an asset to adolescent mental health.” “Finding a safe way for children and adolescents to participate in these activities at the present time can be a way to reduce screen time and promote mental health and well-being.”
Adolescents collectively spend more time on screens
The study used self-reported data from more than 28,000 seventh-grade students between 2014 and 2018 – coming from 27 school districts in British Columbia.
Students answered questions about their use of screen time after school, including how much time they spent watching TV, Netflix, YouTube, streaming videos or something else, and how much time they spent playing video or computer games.
After that, students reported how many days they participated in extraordinary activities such as sports, music, or arts programs.
For mental health, the researchers asked students to rate an indicator of “I will think most days” on a scale of “disagree” on a “many agree” basis.
The researchers said in the study that some results were expected. Students without any extracurricular activities have higher screen time, for example. And they expect girls to score higher on negative mental health indicators, as previous research has found that they have a higher rate of depressive symptoms and anxiety than boys.
Significantly, the researchers say, 46% of students who participated in extraordinary activities exceeded the recommended screen time of two hours, a limit set by the Canadian Pediatric Society. At the same time, 67% of students who did not participate in extraordinary activities also had their screen time exceeded two hours. Also, these indicate high screen time in adolescents in general.
“This is consistent with research that has shown an increase in the use of recreational screens in adolescents over the past decade, showing that screen time is a zoo for teens to use for recreational time.”
Extraordinary activities remain key to better mental health
Nevertheless, paranormal activities are still significantly related to high levels of optimism and life satisfaction – a trend that was displayed on the species and to be independent of screen time, the study said.
“These findings confirm our hypothesis and align it with previous research and emphasize that outdoor activities are an asset to development in adolescence.” “While past studies have highlighted the importance of special activities for social, emotional and educational development, current studies emphasize their importance for positive mental health outcomes.”
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