Childhood bullying produces adolescents and adults with mental health problems

More distrustful and with a greater risk of suffering from mental disorders. Such are many of the adolescents who have experienced childhood bullying as children. This is confirmed by a study published in Nature Mental Health, which is one of the first to examine the connection between peer bullying, interpersonal mistrust, and the subsequent development of mental health problems, such as anxiety. . , depression, hyperactivity and anger. The research, carried out by a team from the University of California-Los Angeles (UCLA) and the University of Glasgow (United Kingdom), found that adolescents who develop a strong distrust of other people as a result of childhood bullying have significantly more . odds of experiencing significant mental health problems upon entering adulthood compared to those who do not develop interpersonal trust problems. The researchers used data from 10,000 children in the United Kingdom who were studied for almost two decades as part of the Millennium Cohort Study. Related News Standard ABC Forum No Adolescents and mental health: “Cases are ‘psychiatrized’ to treat normal life suffering” Laura Peraita Several experts warn that many young people believe they are sick, because of what they see and hear, “but they are not.” From this data, they found that adolescents who were bullied at age 11 and developed greater interpersonal distrust at age 14 were about 3.5 times more likely to experience clinically significant mental health problems at age 17. compared to those who developed less distrust. The findings could help schools and other institutions develop new evidence-based interventions to counteract the negative mental health impacts of bullying, according to the study’s lead author, George Slavich of UCLA Health. “There are no public health issues more important than the mental health of young people right now,” says Slavich. “To help adolescents reach their full potential, we need to invest in research that identifies risk factors for poor health and translates this knowledge into prevention programs that can improve lifelong health and resilience.” The findings come amid growing public health concerns about young people’s mental health. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), half of mental health disorders begin before the age of fourteen and, in most cases, are not detected or treated, resulting in long-lasting consequences. . in adulthood. In this new study, researchers looked at these alarming trends from the perspective of Social Security Theory, which posits that social threats, such as bullying, affect mental health in part by instilling the belief that other people cannot be trusted or trusted. that the world is a hostile, dangerous or unpredictable place. According to the WHO, half of mental health disorders begin before the age of fourteen. Previous research has already identified associations between bullying and mental health and behavioral problems in young people, including its impact on substance abuse, depression. , anxiety, self-harm and suicidal thoughts. However, by following young people over time, this study is the first to confirm the suspicion of how bullying leads to mistrust and, in turn, mental health problems in late adolescence. Slavich believes that when people develop clinically significant mental health problems during adolescence, it may increase their risk of experiencing mental and physical health problems throughout life if they are not adequately addressed. In addition to interpersonal mistrust, the authors examined whether diet, sleep, or physical activity also linked peer bullying to subsequent mental health problems. However, only interpersonal distrust was found to be related to an increased risk of experiencing mental health problems at age 17. “What this data suggests is that we really need school programs that help foster a sense of interpersonal trust at the classroom and school level,” Slavich says. “One way to do this would be to develop evidence-based programs that especially focus on the transition to high school and college, and that frame school as an opportunity to develop close, lasting relationships,” she concludes.