The Youth Mind: Rising aggression and anger
January 23, 2025
We are in the midst of a youth mental health crisis. Historically, psychological wellbeing followed a U-shaped curve, with younger and older generations experiencing the highest wellbeing. However, recent data from the Global Mind Project shows this curve has now collapsed, with each successively younger generation reporting poorer wellbeing and overall mind health. At the same time, statistics highlight high levels of sadness and rising suicide rates among 10–18-year-olds, especially in females, with violence and safety fears also growing in this age group.
This report asks what is behind this alarming trend by examining data captured from 10,475 internet-enabled 13–17-year-olds in the US and India, collected in 2023-2024. By assessing 47 aspects of mind health alongside lifestyle and life experiences, it offers a unique and current perspective on the challenges faced by this age group.
Here’s what we find:
- Adolescents are worse than young adults aged 18-24 who in turn fare worse than those aged 25-34, and so on. The trend is particularly pronounced in girls, where 65% are distressed or struggling in a manner that substantially impairs their ability to function effectively in the world and would be of clinical concern.
- 13-17 year-olds aren’t just experiencing sadness and anxiety – they are also experiencing unwanted, strange thoughts and a sense of being detached from reality. Additionally, the problems that are increasing fastest are feelings of aggression towards others, anger & irritability and hallucinations.
- Rapidly increasing problems of aggression and anger & irritability can in a large part be attributed to the increasingly younger age at which children are now getting a smartphone.
Altogether these findings paint an alarming picture of the mind health of today’s adolescents, especially as the age of smartphone ownership gets ever younger. Even as we continue to probe the root causes, it is clear that swift action is needed. Parents, schools, and governments all have the power to reduce early childhood exposure to smartphones and mitigate potential harm.
Read the Report
Download the Report (in English)
Download the Data Tables
View Data Graphs
Cite this report as: The Youth Mind, Rising Aggression and Anger, Global Mind Project, Sapien Labs, January, 2025.
This report is based on data from 10,475 internet-enabled 13-17 year olds in the United States and India, obtained between August 2023 and November 2024 as part of the Youth Global Mind Project. Data were collected using an assessment called the Mental Health Quotient, or MHQ, which assesses 47 aspects of mental feeling and function that are aggregated into a overall mental wellbeing score that reflects someone’s ability to navigate life’s challenges and function productively, or essentially their capacity of mind.
It’s important to note that this data is from online respondents and does not include people without internet access. This will have a bigger impact in some developing countries where many communities live offline.
