Anxiety

The Anxiety and Depression working group focuses on effects of digital entertainment and digital communication (texting, social media) on symptoms of anxiety and depression in children and adolescents. There are several areas of focus. One involves examining fear reactions to content of digital entertainment (including television, movies, and other media) and the effects on emotional health (such as fearful avoidance, sleep disturbances, and lingering fears). A second area of focus concerns anxiety and depression caused by the growing use of social media sites exacerbating negative social comparison and self-evaluation, and substituted digital communication potentially resulting a lack of emotion regulation skills. A third area relates to a potential increase in social anxiety and phobic avoidance secondary to substituted digital media use (rather than face-to-face). A fourth and final area examines ways that young people may use a variety of digital media to cope with depression and the effectiveness of these strategies.

WORKGROUP MEMBERS

 

Workgroup Co-Chair

Elizabeth Hoge, MD

Elizabeth Hoge, MD
Assistant Professor of Psychiatry,
Georgetown University Medical Center, Washington, D.C.

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Workgroup Co-Chair

Joanne Cantor, PhD

Joanne Cantor, PhD
Professor, Department of Medicine Research, Boston Childrens Hospital, Harvard Medical, Boston, MA

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David Bickham, PhD

David Bickham, PhD
Instructor in Pediatrics, Research Scientist,
Children's Hospital Boston,
Center on Media and Child Health, Boston, MA

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