Recent global research has highlighted a troubling trend: Young people, particularly in North America, are experiencing lower levels of happiness compared to older generations, signalling what some experts are likening to a midlife crisis in youth. This significant shift in well-being has prompted the United States Surgeon General, Dr. Vivek Murthy, to issue a stark warning about the mental health of young individuals, emphasizing the urgent need for better regulation of social media platforms.
Dr. Murthy has compared allowing children unrestricted access to social media to administering unproven medicine, criticizing the lack of action from governments worldwide in implementing stricter controls over these platforms. His comments come in the wake of new data indicating that the happiness gap between young people and their elders is widening, with North America witnessing particularly notable declines in youth happiness. This change in trend has been so pronounced that it has contributed to the United States dropping out of the top 20 happiest nations worldwide, according to the 2024 World Happiness Report.
The report, a comprehensive survey of well-being across 140 countries conducted by Oxford University’s Wellbeing Research Centre, Gallup, and the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network, underscores alarming drops in happiness levels among the youth in North America and Western Europe. “The equivalent of a midlife crisis in children is a cause for immediate policy action,” stated Prof Jan-Emmanuel De Neve, the study’s editor.
This downturn in well-being contradicts previous assumptions that youth inherently enjoy higher happiness levels, which naturally decline into midlife before rebounding. The situation is so dire that, in the latest happiness rankings, Americans under 30 find themselves ranked lower than those in countries facing significant challenges, including high murder rates or economic difficulties.
The declining happiness scores have sparked debate over potential causes, with increased social media use, income inequality, housing crises, and concerns over global issues like war and climate change being implicated. In response to these challenges, Dr. Murthy has called for immediate legislative action to mitigate the harmful effects of social media on young people, suggesting measures such as limiting or eliminating like buttons and infinite scrolling features.
The report also highlights the enduring happiness of nations like Finland, Denmark, and Iceland, which consistently top the rankings due to their robust social support systems, equal income distribution, and high levels of trust in institutions. On the other end of the spectrum, Afghanistan and Lebanon remain the least happy countries, with several African nations, including Cambodia, Russia, and China seeing improvements in happiness levels.
The implications of these findings are far-reaching, with childhood well-being and emotional health identified as key predictors of adult life satisfaction. This underscores the importance of addressing the mental health crisis among the youth not just for their current well-being but for their future success and happiness.
As nations grapple with these findings, there is a growing consensus on the need for comprehensive strategies to enhance mental health support and life skills education for young people, ensuring that the next generation can achieve a higher quality of life and well-being.
