The Impact of Social Media on Adolescent Identity Formation and Mental Health: Opportunities, Risks, and Policy Implications

Authors

  • Mahmood Anwar Road Safety Education and Testing Institute

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.61194/psychology.v2i2.496

Keywords:

Psychological resilience, social support, stress management, mental health interventions, cultural influences, spirituality, crisis coping

Abstract

Psychological resilience is a critical factor in mental health and well-being, particularly in the face of increasing global stressors such as the COVID-19 pandemic. This study conducts a comprehensive narrative review to examine the key determinants of resilience, focusing on social support, stress management, cultural influences, and spirituality. A systematic literature search was conducted using Scopus, PubMed, and Google Scholar to identify empirical studies on resilience and its contributing factors. The findings underscore the significant role of social networks in enhancing resilience, demonstrating that individuals with strong support systems experience lower levels of anxiety and depression. Effective stress management techniques, including mindfulness and structured coping strategies, further contribute to resilience by promoting emotional regulation. Additionally, cultural and spiritual factors influence resilience development, with collectivist societies benefiting from community-driven support structures, while individualist cultures rely more on personal coping mechanisms. These results highlight the need for targeted interventions to strengthen resilience across diverse populations. Policymakers must prioritize mental health infrastructure, integrate resilience training into education and workplace settings, and promote digital mental health interventions. Future research should explore longitudinal effects of resilience-building strategies and assess the potential of digital platforms in enhancing psychological resilience. By adopting a multi-dimensional approach, societies can better equip individuals to withstand adversity and improve overall mental well-being.

References

Abramson, D. M., Grattan, L. M., Mayer, B., Colten, C. E., Arosemena, F. A., Rung, A. L., & Lichtveld, M. Y. (2014). The Resilience Activation Framework: A Conceptual Model of How Access to Social Resources Promotes Adaptation and Rapid Recovery in Post-Disaster Settings. The Journal of Behavioral Health Services & Research, 42(1), 42–57. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11414-014-9410-2

Agarwal, B., Brooks, S. K., & Greenberg, N. (2019). The Role of Peer Support in Managing Occupational Stress: A Qualitative Study of the Sustaining Resilience at Work Intervention. Workplace Health & Safety, 68(2), 57–64. https://doi.org/10.1177/2165079919873934

Al-Wathinani, A. M., Almusallam, M. A., Albaqami, N. A., Aljuaid, M., Alghamdi, A. A., Alhallaf, M. A., & Goniewicz, K. (2023). Enhancing Psychological Resilience: Examining the Impact of Managerial Support on Mental Health Outcomes for Saudi Ambulance Personnel. Healthcare, 11(9), 1277. https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare11091277

Arima, M., Takamiya, Y., Furuta, A., Siriratsivawong, K., Tsuchiya, S., & Izumi, M. (2020). Factors Associated With the Mental Health Status of Medical Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Study in Japan. BMJ Open, 10(12), e043728. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2020-043728

Banerjee, D., Rao, T. S. S., Kallivayalil, R. A., & Javed, A. (2021). Psychosocial Framework of Resilience: Navigating Needs and Adversities During the Pandemic, a Qualitative Exploration in the Indian Frontline Physicians. Frontiers in Psychology, 12. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.622132

Berger, R., Benatov, J., Cuadros, R., VanNattan, J., & Gelkopf, M. (2018). Enhancing Resiliency and Promoting Prosocial Behavior Among Tanzanian Primary-School Students: A School-Based Intervention. Transcultural Psychiatry, 55(6), 821–845. https://doi.org/10.1177/1363461518793749

Bhamani, S. S., Arthur, D., Parys, A. V, Létourneau, N., Wagnild, G., Premji, S. S., Asad, N., & Degomme, O. (2022). Resilience and Prenatal Mental Health in Pakistan: A Qualitative Inquiry. BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth, 22(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12884-022-05176-y

Chen, X., Qiao, C., Arber, A., Shen, Y., Rui, Y., Zhang, R., Pei, Z., Tang, Y., Sha, Z. D., Bao, J., Zhang, J., Li, J., Wang, D., & Wang, X. (2023). Enhancing Resilient Coping Strategies for Quality of Life in Chinese Adult Children Caregiving for Parents With Advanced Cancer: A Cross-Sectional Study. Supportive Care in Cancer, 31(10). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00520-023-08057-y

Enrique, Á., Mooney, O., Salamanca-Sanabria, A., Lee, C. T., Farrell, S., & Richards, D. (2019). Assessing the Efficacy and Acceptability of an Internet-Delivered Intervention for Resilience Among College Students: A Pilot Randomised Control Trial Protocol. Internet Interventions, 17, 100254. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.invent.2019.100254

Finkelstein‐Fox, L., Rasmussen, A. W., Hall, D. L., Perez, G. K., Comander, A., Peppercorn, J., Anctil, R., Wang, C., & Park, E. R. (2022). Testing Psychosocial Mediators of a Mind–body Resiliency Intervention for Cancer Survivors. Supportive Care in Cancer, 30(7), 5911–5919. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00520-022-07022-5

Jongen, C., McCalman, J., & Bainbridge, R. G. (2020). A Systematic Scoping Review of the Resilience Intervention Literature for Indigenous Adolescents in CANZUS Nations. Frontiers in Public Health, 7. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2019.00351

Kock, J. H. D., Latham, H. A., Leslie, S. J., Grindle, M., Munoz, S.-A., Ellis, L., Polson, R., & O’Malley, C. (2021). A Rapid Review of the Impact of COVID-19 on the Mental Health of Healthcare Workers: Implications for Supporting Psychological Well-Being. BMC Public Health, 21(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-020-10070-3

Lee, K., Hyun, K., Mitchell, J., Saha, T., Gibson, N. O., & Krejci, C. C. (2021). Exploring Factors Enhancing Resilience Among Marginalized Older Adults During the COVID-19 Pandemic. Journal of Applied Gerontology, 41(3), 610–618. https://doi.org/10.1177/07334648211048749

Lim, X. Y., Yap, A. C., Mahendran, R., & Yu, J. (2021). The Interplay Between Anxiety, Fear, Protective Behaviors, Compassion, and Resilience Among Older Adults During a COVID-19 Lockdown: A Structural Equation Modeling Study. Translational Behavioral Medicine, 11(5), 1172–1178. https://doi.org/10.1093/tbm/ibaa143

Lucassen, M., Núñez‐García, A., Rimes, K. A., Wallace, L., Brown, K., & Samra, R. (2022). Coping Strategies to Enhance the Mental Wellbeing of Sexual and Gender Minority Youths: A Scoping Review. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(14), 8738. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19148738

Mäkiniemi, J.-P., Oksanen, A., & Mäkikangas, A. (2021). Loneliness and Well-Being During the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Moderating Roles of Personal, Social and Organizational Resources on Perceived Stress and Exhaustion Among Finnish University Employees. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 18(13), 7146. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18137146

Mezzina, R., Gopikumar, V., Jenkins, J., Saraceno, B., & Sashidharan, S. P. (2022). Social Vulnerability and Mental Health Inequalities in the “Syndemic”: Call for Action. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 13. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2022.894370

Nestor, P. G., Hasler, V. C., O’Donovan, K., Lapp, H. E., Boodai, S. B., & Hunter, R. (2021). Psychiatric Risk and Resilience: Plasticity Genes and Positive Mental Health. Brain and Behavior, 11(6). https://doi.org/10.1002/brb3.2137

Park, Y., Jung, Y., Kim, M.-D., & Bahk, W. (2022). COVID-19–Related Functional Impairment in a Community Sample of Korean Adults: Associations With Depression, COVID-19 Infection Fear, and Resilience. Psychiatry Investigation, 19(11), 919–926. https://doi.org/10.30773/pi.2022.0138

Sattler, D. N., Boyd, W., & Kirsch, J. A. (2014). Trauma‐exposed Firefighters: Relationships Among Posttraumatic Growth, Posttraumatic Stress, Resource Availability, Coping and Critical Incident Stress Debriefing Experience. Stress and Health, 30(5), 356–365. https://doi.org/10.1002/smi.2608

Shi, Y. (2022). Assessment of Effect of Perceived Social Support on School Readiness, Mental Wellbeing, and Self-Esteem: Mediating Role of Psychological Resilience. Frontiers in Psychology, 13. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.911841

Synnes, O., & Malterud, K. (2018). Queer Narratives and Minority Stress: Stories From Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Individuals in Norway. Scandinavian Journal of Public Health, 47(2), 105–114. https://doi.org/10.1177/1403494818759841

Tengbe, S. M., Kamara, I. F., Ali, D. B., Koroma, F. F., Sevalie, S., Dean, L., & Theobald, S. (2023). Psychosocial Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Front-Line Healthcare Workers in Sierra Leone: An Explorative Qualitative Study. BMJ Open, 13(8), e068551. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2022-068551

Tozer, M., Khawaja, N. G., & Schweitzer, R. (2017). Protective Factors Contributing to Wellbeing Among Refugee Youth in Australia. Journal of Psychologists and Counsellors in Schools, 28(1), 66–83. https://doi.org/10.1017/jgc.2016.31

Tsay, S., Mu, P., Lin, S., Wang, K. K., & Chen, Y. (2013). The Experiences of Adult Ventilator‐dependent Patients: A Meta‐synthesis Review. Nursing and Health Sciences, 15(4), 525–533. https://doi.org/10.1111/nhs.12049

Verner, G., Epel, E. S., Lahti‐Pulkkinen, M., Kajantie, E., Buß, C., Lin, J., Blackburn, E. H., Räikkönen, K., Wadhwa, P. D., & Entringer, S. (2021). Maternal Psychological Resilience During Pregnancy and Newborn Telomere Length: A Prospective Study. American Journal of Psychiatry, 178(2), 183–192. https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ajp.2020.19101003

Wang, L., Zhou, S., Xue, Y., Li, Q., Cao, M., & Gu, C. (2023). Does Early Victimization of School Bullies Affect Core Self-Evaluations in Young Adulthood? A Moderated Mediation Model. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 20(4), 3338. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20043338

Wei, W., Yang, R., Zhang, J., Chen, H., Ye, J., Su, Q., Liao, J., & Xiao, Z. (2022). The Mediating Roles of Family Resilience and Social Support in the Relationship Between Illness Severity and Depressive Symptoms Among Primary Caregivers of Children With Epilepsy in China. Frontiers in Neurology, 13. https://doi.org/10.3389/fneur.2022.831899

Wilson, N., Turner‐Halliday, F., & Minnis, H. (2021). Escaping the Inescapable: Risk of Mental Health Disorder, Somatic Symptoms and Resilience in Palestinian Refugee Children. Transcultural Psychiatry, 58(2), 307–320. https://doi.org/10.1177/1363461520987070

Xiong, J., Ma, H., Ma, R., Xu, T., & Wang, Y. (2023). The Relationship Between Perceived Stress and Prolonged Grief Disorder Among Chinese Shidu Parents: Effects of Anxiety and Social Support. BMC Psychiatry, 23(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12888-023-05206-9

Yeung, N. C. Y., Kan, K. K. Y., Wong, A., & Lau, J. T. F. (2021). Self-Stigma, Resilience, Perceived Quality of Social Relationships, and Psychological Distress Among Filipina Domestic Helpers in Hong Kong: A Mediation Model. Stigma and Health, 6(1), 90–99. https://doi.org/10.1037/sah0000246

Downloads

Published

2024-05-30

Issue

Section

Articles