Young Australians demand action on mental health, cost of living and education reform: report
Curtin University
A new report by the Bankwest Curtin Economics Centre has revealed that young Australians are feeling the squeeze from financial pressures, worsening mental health and declining trust in political institutions, with concerns about the cost of living now topping their list of priorities.
Released today, the Youth in Focus: Navigating Wellbeing in a Changing World report draws on insights from young Australians aged 14 to 25, highlighting their biggest challenges and what they want to see change. While cost of living, education and mental health were identified as key concerns, the report also finds young people are leading the way in tackling social issues, such as calling out discrimination, racism and gender bias.
Professor Astghik Mavisakalyan, report co-author and Principal Research Fellow at the Bankwest Curtin Economics Centre said the findings underscore the urgent need for policies that better support young Australians.
“Young people today face financial stress, rising HECS debts, mental health struggles and uncertainty about their future,” Professor Mavisakalyan said.
“Mental health issues among young women have worsened significantly over the past decade, with three in ten experiencing high or very high psychological distress – double the rate of their male counterparts. At the same time, social connectedness is deteriorating, despite the prevalence of social media, which is leaving many young people feeling isolated and unsupported.”
The report shows cost of living pressures have skyrocketed to become the most pressing issue for young Australians, with one third citing it as a personal concern and more than half (56 per cent) listing it as one of the biggest challenges facing the country.
Professor Mavisakalyan said the impact of social media on mental health remains a growing concern.
“Our research shows that more than a quarter of young people who frequently use social media experience serious anxiety and stress,” Professor Mavisakalyan said.
“The Federal Government’s proposed national social media ban is an unprecedented experiment that could help counter negative impacts on young people. However, there is also a real risk of unintended consequences and any restrictions must be carefully evaluated to ensure they don’t cause harm, particularly for vulnerable groups.”
The report also shines a light on growing frustration with Australia’s higher education system, particularly with policies such as the current HECS-HELP structure and the Job-ready Graduates Package which findings suggest are unfairly burdening young Australians.
Report co-author Professor Mike Dockery from the Bankwest Curtin Economics Centre said the HECS system has drifted away from its original intent to provide fair and equitable access to higher education.
“Many graduates today face mounting debt, lower take-home pay and increased financial stress compared to previous generations,” Professor Dockery said.
“The Job-Ready Graduates Package, which determines course fees based on predicted workforce demand, is flawed and is creating a generational divide. Our analysis finds no real link between course costs and future employment outcomes, meaning students are being penalised for choosing courses that may actually be vital to Australia’s future workforce needs.”
Despite a slight decline in climate change ranking as a top priority, the report finds young Australians remain committed to environmental action. Three-quarters still want environmental protection prioritised over economic growth and 86 per cent of 18 to 24-year-olds see climate change as a key voting issue.
However, the report also highlights young Australians’ growing disengagement from politics, with just one in eight expressing trust in the political process.
Professor Dockery said young people want real action, not just promises.
“The upcoming Federal election will be a critical moment to re-engage younger voters. If political leaders fail to address their concerns - on cost of living, education, mental health and climate action - they risk further alienating an entire generation,” Professor Dockery said.
The Youth in Focus report provides a comprehensive analysis of the priorities and perspectives of young Australians, offering key insights to shape future policy development.
Method of Research
Survey
Subject of Research
People
Article Publication Date
12-Mar-2025
For teens' mental health, strong friendships matter more than social media use, NIH study finds
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About ECHO
The ECHO Cohort Consortium is a research program supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) with the mission to enhance the health of children for generations to come. ECHO Cohort investigators study the effects of a broad range of early environmental influences on child health and development. For more information, visit echochildren.org.
Credit: The ECHO Program
Teens who report strong, high-quality friendships tend to have better mental health—an influence that appears nearly three times stronger than the link between social media use and mental health challenges, according to a new study funded by the Environmental influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) Program at the National Institutes of Health.
Today’s teens spend a lot of time online. This has raised concerns about how digital interactions affect teens’ well-being. As social media use has grown, some wonder if it’s playing a role in the rise of teen mental health challenges. Such concerns prompted the U.S. Surgeon General to issue a warning in 2023 about the potential impact of social media on youth mental health.
“Social media use does not occur in a vacuum—it’s one piece of a much larger picture,” said Courtney K. Blackwell, PhD, of Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine. “Our study found that peer relationships seem to matter a lot more than social media when it comes to teen mental health outcomes.”
In the study, researchers found that a teen with strong, supportive friendships is likely to experience positive mental health, regardless of how much time they spend on social media. By contrast, teens who report poor-quality friendships and nearly the same level of social media use are more likely to report poor mental health. In comparison, the amount of time spent using social media had a much smaller influence on teen mental health outcomes.
Teens ages 13 to 18 reported how much time they spend on social media and whether they use it actively (like posting and commenting) or passively (like scrolling and browsing). Researchers used the PROMIS® assessment tools and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire to measure their mental well-being, including life satisfaction, sense of purpose, symptoms of depression, and the quality of their friendships.
A 2021 national survey of 8th and 10th graders, cited in the U.S. Surgeon General’s report on social media and youth mental health, found that teens spent an average of 3.5 hours daily on social media. More recently, a 2023 Gallup survey of 13- to 19-year-olds reported that the average had increased to 4.8 hours per day.
The study included 963 teens aged 13 to 18 from across the United States. Teens completed surveys on social media habits, peer relationship quality, and mental health outcomes. The results provide insight into how social media use and mental health influence each other during the teenage years, extending beyond negative outcomes like anxiety and depression to also include positive mental health indicators.
“Instead of just focusing on limiting adolescents’ social media use, perhaps emphasizing ways to bolster the quality of their social relationships would help address the current youth mental health crisis in the U.S.,” said Dr. Blackwell.
Looking ahead, the research team plans to use data collected over time to understand better how social media use and mental health influence each other during this sensitive development period. Future studies could focus on improving peer relationship quality as a pathway to better teen mental health outcomes.
This collaborative research was published in the Journal of Adolescent Health.
About ECHO
The ECHO Cohort Consortium is a research program supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) with the mission to enhance the health of children for generations to come. ECHO Cohort investigators study the effects of a broad range of early environmental influences on child health and development. For more information, visit echochildren.org.
Journal
Journal of Adolescent Health
Method of Research
Observational study
Subject of Research
People
Article Title
Adolescent Social Media Use and Mental Health in the Environmental Influences on Child Health Outcomes Study
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