YOUNG individuals are more prone to report feeling lonely and fewer prone to have stable friendships and relationships than they were a decade ago, a study for the Boys’ Brigade suggests.
Almost half of the young people surveyed — 44 per cent — reported being in mental distress, and yet diagnoses of mental ill-health haven’t kept pace with this rise, owing to pressures on services. Rates of self-harm by young people have also increased, as have rates of disability and obesity, and more children than ever say that they’re unhappy with their lives: one in every 15. A decade ago, this was just one in 30.
One in seven young people said that they were unhappy with their appearance, a statistic that has risen in the course of the pandemic.
The Brigade marked the one hundred and fortieth anniversary of its founding as a Christian youth organisation last 12 months, and launched into the study of knowledge collected from young people to know higher the brand new generation that it’s working with, and the pressures that they face.
Produced with the Youthscape Centre for Research, the study, Youth Culture and Trends, drew on data from large-scale UK research studies and analysed trends.
It found that the shift to spending more time online with friends or others quite than face-to-face relationships mirrored a decline in satisfaction with friendships and an increase in loneliness. More young people now said that they were less completely happy with family relationships; and yet there was some evidence that young people were talking to their parents more. Some figures suggested that young people were talking more to their fathers, specifically, than in previous years.
The study examined early evidence of the effect of Covid-19 on young people, noting its link to rising mental-health problems. But it also found that more young people had been participating in extra-curricular activities for the reason that end of Covid restrictions, as a response to an absence of opportunities in the course of the pandemic.
The impact of reductions in young people’s services presented organisations corresponding to the Boys’ Brigade with opportunities, the study concluded.
It said: “The Boys’ Brigade has a chance to share and embody a significant message. To be present in those spaces where services have been cut, where young people face drawback, where waiting lists are too long and where uncertainty reigns. To bring a message that experiencing life in all its fullness is a reality that’s open to all; that there are people willing to return alongside them, to speculate themselves in relationships and genuinely look after them; that they’re included, they’re valued they usually have something to supply one another and the world.”
The chief executive of the Boys’ Brigade, Jonathan Eales, said: “Over the last decade, young people’s well-being has taken a downward turn, and that could be a major concern for us here on the Boys’ Brigade.
“Spending less time with family and friends will ultimately result in children and young people feeling more isolated and alone. Plus, it goes without saying that young individuals are spending more time online consuming content that’s influencing their values and views — of themselves and the world — in addition to conducting their friendships online.
“All of those variables are ultimately impacting the mental health of the younger generation, and because of this it’s so vital for kids and young people to have a solid support network, and more face-to-face interactions.
“Here, on the Boys’ Brigade, we’ve been working with children and young people inside local communities for 140 years, helping them to learn, grow, and discover in a protected environment which is rooted in Christian faith. Even though the research shows young people today are much less likely to contemplate themselves ‘Christian’, and fewer prone to have grown up in environments where they’ve gained knowledge or experience of the Christian faith, they’re still open to exploring what faith means to them — something which the Boys’ Brigade helps them to explore.”
The study found that fewer young people identified as Christian, but just about all young people were concerned by and aware of climate change. There was also evidence of greater diversity in young people’s sexual orientation, and lower rates of drug-taking, drinking, and under-age pregnancies than amongst previous generations.
The Boys’ Brigade works with about 20,000 young people through 750 churches and communities. Although the Brigade was arrange originally for boys, many groups now welcome girls.
