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Any time and place? Digital emotional support for digital natives.
Abstract
Digital natives (i.e., those who have grown up in the digital age) are likely to receive emotional support through digital means, such as texting and video calling. However, virtually all studies assessing the benefits of emotional support have focused on in-person support; the relative efficacy of digital support remains unclear. This study assessed a sample of young adults' negative emotions, digital and in-person support for those emotions, and success in regulating them 3 times per day for 14 days (N = 164; 6,530 collective measurement occasions). Participants' social surroundings at the time of each negative emotion and trait levels of social avoidance were also considered. Digital support was expected to be received more often and perceived as more effective for regulating negative emotions when participants were alone and higher in social avoidance. However, with the exception of those higher in social avoidance receiving less digital (and in-person) support, digital support was received and perceived as effective regardless of these factors, and its perceived effectiveness was on par with that of in-person support. For digital natives, digital support may be just as effective as the "real thing" and its benefits may not be restricted to isolated or socially avoidant users. Findings are discussed in relation to the emotional consequences and social constraints of the COVID-19 pandemic. If transcending the time and space limitations of in-person support with digital support is the new norm, the good news is that it seems to be working. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).
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Children, adolescents, and young adults can be considered digital natives, which might make them especially receptive to online interventions.
“Whereas children, adolescents, and young adults can be considered “digital natives” [42], which might make them especially receptive to online interventions, younger individuals also seem to be especially vulnerable to negative aspects of digital media usage (eg, problematic smartphone use) [43].”
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Metadata
- Authors
- Colasante, T., Lin, L., De France, K., & Hollenstein, T.
- Affiliations
- Queen's University (CA)
- Venue
- American Psychologist
- Published
- 2022-02
- Volume
- 77
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 186-195
- ISSN
- 0003-066X (ISSN-L)
- 1935-990X
- OpenAlex
- W3088739152
- Cited by
- 41
- References
- 0
- Citations by year
- 2026: 6 · 2025: 3 · 2024: 6 · 2023: 10 · 2022: 10
- FWCI
- 7.11
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- American Psychologist (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (04560-2017)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Attachment and Relationship Dynamics
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Impact of Technology on Adolescents
- Social Sciences › Linguistics and Language › Digital Communication and Language
- Keywords
- digital natives, negative emotions, emotion regulation, social avoidance, text messaging, video calls, young adults, COVID-19 pandemic, social isolation
- MeSH terms
- COVID-19, Emotions, Humans, Social Behavior, Young Adult, Pandemics, Text Messaging
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