Depression and Social Media in 10-15 year olds
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Attitudes of Primary Health Care professional towards the increase of depression in 10-15 year olds and an increased social media usage in the previous ten years. A Qualitative Study.
IRAS ID
197940
Contact name
William Coppola
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University College London
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
Z6364106/2015/12/67 clinical research, UCL data protection registration
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 5 months, 1 days
Research summary
Depression and depressive symptoms have been increasing amongst 10-15 year olds over the last ten years as has the UK hospital admissions for self-harm which have risen by 68%. Within the same time period, social media has become a very prominent feature of modern life. This is especially true for young people. With an increasing pressure on adolescents arising from online social platforms, there may be a significant impact on their mental health. However, there has been little research conducted around social media’s impact on young people’s mental health. I wish to add to the paucity of the pre-existing literature. This study is qualitative in design and will involve conducting semi-structured interviews lasting 30-60 mins. It is expected that 12-15 participants will be recruited by local collaborator from one general practice surgery in Barnet in North London and interviews will take place at the surgery they work in at a time that is convenient to them from Jan-April 2016. Participants must have experience working with depressed 10-15-year-old to be eligible. Approval will be sought from the NHS Research and Development (R&D) offices and UCL research ethics committee before recruitment can begin. Written and verbal consent will be obtained from the interviewees. The identities of the participants will be anonymised and all information given will be strictly confidential. Data will be collected using a digital audio recording device, transcribed (by student researcher) and stored in a locked facility in the Primary Care and Population Health Department at the Royal Free Hospital. This study has been registered with the UCL data protection officer. I hope to achieve a better understanding of the attitudes of health professionals working in general practice towards the impact social media has on 10-15 year olds and whether this contributes to depression and/or exacerbates it.
REC name
N/A
REC reference
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