Adolescent internalizing symptoms (e.g. depressive affect) have increased over the past decade in the US, particularly among girls. The reasons for these increases are unclear. We hypothesize that increasing exposure to politicized events has contributed ...
I think it probably comes down to how you’re raised. Conservatives will tell their kids black and white things. Something is either good or bad whereas liberals will try to insert the very real nuance into things.
Kids need things to be black and white when they’re very young because they don’t have the mental capacity to handle a lot of nuance, so trying to teach it early will give them a negative outlook on the world even if it’s a realistic idea about things. Where conservative parents faulter is they never teach the nuance, so their kids spend a good chunk of their adult years thinking black and white which is obviously wrong even if they’re happier.
A good tactic is give a positive, black and white outlook on the world when kids are young and add complexity as they go.
Ex: tell a young kid that cops are good people to call when there’s an emergency. As they get older, and the very real atrocious things they do appear on the news, you keep adding to the truth, so when they’re grown, and if they’re a POC like my son, they learn to be wary of cops, but still can 911 in an emergency. That you don’t automatically assume ACAB, but you don’t have to trust them, know your rights, etc
Devils advocate here, psychology is hard and I don’t have a clue. What if the basis of black/white is more of an institutional thing (such as Santa’s naughty/good list, red vs blue) and less of a “what a child needs”? As in, do we really know for sure that’s how proper development is needed to curb some mental health concerns? If the spectrum of life is more laid out in the fundamentals of development would that really cause the result we are seeing here?
In conclusion, we found that worsening time trends in adolescent internalizing symptoms from approximately 2010 onward diverged by political beliefs and were most severe for female liberal adolescents without a parent with a college degree. (bold by me)
I would imagine (not raised as a female) that the stark contrast of “what” you’re suppose to be (in regards to relationship expectation perpetuated by peers and media - the study used 12th-grade students), with the sudden realization that you must also be a “working person” in a seemingly-crumbling society could be highly impactful. Typically Males can maintain the same course of progression, as from earlier stages of life their “status path” (what society deems acceptable) doesn’t vary as much.
I think it probably comes down to how you’re raised. Conservatives will tell their kids black and white things. Something is either good or bad whereas liberals will try to insert the very real nuance into things.
Kids need things to be black and white when they’re very young because they don’t have the mental capacity to handle a lot of nuance, so trying to teach it early will give them a negative outlook on the world even if it’s a realistic idea about things. Where conservative parents faulter is they never teach the nuance, so their kids spend a good chunk of their adult years thinking black and white which is obviously wrong even if they’re happier.
A good tactic is give a positive, black and white outlook on the world when kids are young and add complexity as they go.
Ex: tell a young kid that cops are good people to call when there’s an emergency. As they get older, and the very real atrocious things they do appear on the news, you keep adding to the truth, so when they’re grown, and if they’re a POC like my son, they learn to be wary of cops, but still can 911 in an emergency. That you don’t automatically assume ACAB, but you don’t have to trust them, know your rights, etc
I hope all that makes sense
Devils advocate here, psychology is hard and I don’t have a clue. What if the basis of black/white is more of an institutional thing (such as Santa’s naughty/good list, red vs blue) and less of a “what a child needs”? As in, do we really know for sure that’s how proper development is needed to curb some mental health concerns? If the spectrum of life is more laid out in the fundamentals of development would that really cause the result we are seeing here?
I would imagine (not raised as a female) that the stark contrast of “what” you’re suppose to be (in regards to relationship expectation perpetuated by peers and media - the study used 12th-grade students), with the sudden realization that you must also be a “working person” in a seemingly-crumbling society could be highly impactful. Typically Males can maintain the same course of progression, as from earlier stages of life their “status path” (what society deems acceptable) doesn’t vary as much.
That makes good sense to me. Thank you for sharing that example.