Depression and suicidal thoughts have doubled in young Americans, according to a new study from the American Psychological Association.
Likely triggers? Cell phones and social media.
“More US adolescents and young adults in the late 2010s, vs the mid-2000s, experienced serious psychological distress, major depression and more attempted suicide (自杀)”, says lead researcher Jean Twenge, professor of psychology at San Diego State University. “These trends are weak or non-existent among adults 26 years and over, suggesting a generational shift in mood disorders instead of an overall increase across all ages.”
Twenge believes this trend is partially due to the explosion of digital culture over the past decade, which may have twisted modes of social interaction enough to affect mood disorders.
The study analyzed data from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, which tracked drug and alcohol use and mental health issues in more than 200,000 youths aged 12 to 17 from 2005 to 2017 and almost 400,000 adults from 2008 to 2017.
Major depression in the last 12 months increased by 52 percent in kids from 2005 to 2017 and 63 percent in young adults aged 18 to 25 from 2009 to 2017. There was also a 71 percent jump in young adults experiencing serious psychological distress in the previous 30 days from 2008 to 2017.
So what’s so different now? Twenge says research shows young people just aren’t getting as much shuteye as they did in previous generations.
Whereas older Americans might have established more stability in their lives, sleep-disrupting social stressors are likely at their peak for teens and young adults in this digital era, she says. Older adults are also less likely to let devices interfere (干预) with sleep.
These results suggest a need for more research to understand how digital communication versus face-to-face social interaction influences mood disorders and to develop specialized interventions for younger age groups.
Her suggestion? Put your phone down at least an hour before bedtime.
1. How is Paragraph 6 developed?| A．By stating facts. | B．By giving examples. |
| C．By providing statistics. | D．By presenting theories. |
| A．Mood disorders show no difference across all ages. |
| B．Teens are less likely to let devices interfere with sleep. |
| C．Digital cultural explosion might cause depression in teens. |
| D．The past decade has seen a sharp decrease in teens mental disorders. |
| A．Interaction modes. | B．Mental health issues. |
| C．Drug and alcohol use. | D．Cell phones and social media. |
| A．A biology textbook. | B．A science magazine. |
| C．A travel guidebook. | D．A medical case. |
相似题推荐
【推荐1】When you go out to eat in a restaurant, you are concerned with both the food and the environment.Universo Santi in Spain delivers (实现) both.Customers could notice that there is something different and special about the restaurant.The employees (雇员）consist entirely of people with special needs.
“People come here not because the employees are disabled (残疾的) but because it’s the best restaurant in the area.Their talking is always about the food, which they really enjoy,” said Antonio Vila, president of the Fundación Universo Accesible, an organization which works on helping people with disabilities join the workforce.“I always wanted to show that people with disabilities, given the right training, were able to do everything,” said Vila.
Now the 20 employees, aged from 22 to 62, are very proud to be working in the restaurant.“I feel really lucky to be part of it,” said Gloria Bazán, head of human resources, who has cerebral palsy (脑瘫).“It’s difficult to work when society just sees you as someone different.This has given me the opportunity to be independent and to take part like any other human being.I appreciate it very much.”
There are other restaurants that make it their duty to employ people with special needs.In New York, Puzzles Bakery & Café believes that everyone deserves （应得到）a chance.That’s why they employ people with developmental disabilities.Brownies & Downies, a lunch café in the Netherlands, is run by people with Down’s syndrome.The café was a big success.
These efforts show that people who have disabilities still have abilities and can be trained to do all types of jobs.They just have to be given a fair chance.
1. What is special about Universo Santi?| A．It is the leading restaurant in Spain. | B．It offers all kinds of delicious food. |
| C．It provides a pleasant environment. | D．It has workers all with special needs. |
| A．They hardly attend social events. |
| B．They are good at cooking dishes. |
| C．They are grateful to work at the restaurant. |
| D．They care too much about others’ opinions. |
| A．All people should get the same chance. |
| B．It is difficult to employ people with special needs. |
| C．Employees should be trained to do all types of jobs |
| D．The food and the environment are of equal importance. |
| A．A novel. | B．A news report. |
| C．A guidebook. | D．An educational book |
【推荐2】Many of you may have used Siri, a voice assistant of US tech company Apple. You only have to say “hey Siri” and it will answer to your command. However, we may be sacrificing our privacy to enjoy this convenience.
According to a recent report by the Guardian, Siri can be accidentally triggered and start recording private conversations, such as discussions between doctors and patients Some of these recordings are then given to workers outside the company to review. Apple claimed the data was used to help Siri improve, but users were not informed of this measure in the first place. Apple’s Siri is not the only voice assistant to come under fire. In 2018, Alexa, a voice assistant developed by US tech company Amazon, recorded a private conversation between a couple and sent it to a stranger without their permission.
These issues deepened concerns that tech companies are infringing (侵犯) users’ rights of privacy. Many people have long feared that tech companies are listening and collecting data from private conversations, reported Forbes. Using this data, third party companies could then paint an accurate picture of users’ habits and preferences in order to serve them more targeted advertisements, or even worse, sell this private data.
Despite this risk, the popularity of voice assistant seems to be unstoppable. In the near future, everything from your lighting to your air-conditioning to your refrigerator, your coffee maker, and even your toilet could be wired to a system controlled by voice, commented The Atlantic.
Colin Horgan wrote on the blog site Medium that he believed people’s daily lives will soon become a source of data. “ The sounds of our homes, the symphony of life laughing, crying, talking, shouting, sitting in silence-will no longer be considered memories, but data, ” he wrote. To deal with the issue, Blake Morgan, reporter for The Atlantic, believed that the answer is transparency. “All companies need to have messaging ready to explain to customers what they do with private data,” she wrote on The Atlantic.
1. What can be inferred from Paragraph 2?| A．There are some fire-proof voice assistants. |
| B．Many voice assistants are. being developed. |
| C．Some voice assistants are also being criticized besides Siri. |
| D．Data collected by Siri is used for better user experience. |
| A．Serving them targeted advertisements. | B．Sending their message. |
| C．Invading their privacy. | D．Making no improvements. |
| A．Stop collecting data through voice assistant. | B．Explain their use of the data to customers. |
| C．Make their data more transparent. | D．Collect data to better keep memories. |
| A．To show visions of a data world in the future. |
| B．To criticize companies’ invading customers’ privacy. |
| C．To inform people of what tech companies are really up to. |
| D．To draw attention to the privacy issue concerning voice assistants. |
【推荐3】China dropped its decades-long, one-child policy several years ago to allow each family to have two children. This change has put 270 million married women of childbearing age in the position of choosing between family and work. The employers also face big challenges as more female workers will have two maternity leaves(产假）for a total of seven to eight months.
In a survey published by classified advertising website Ganji.com, career women who might be considering having a second child were asked what kinds of pressure they might expect. More than 76 percent of the women who were questioned mentioned concerns about the financial burden of raising two children, while more than 71 percent said it would be difficult to balance career and family. In addition, nearly 56 percent said that having a second child would definitely have a negative effect on their career.
Another survey conducted by Chongging-based human resources website job.cg.qq.com found that over 70 percent of job seekers believe that having a second child would make females less popular in the job market, although two-thirds of the employers said the policy will make no difference in their employment of staff.
Feng Lijuan, a senior expert on human resources at 51 job. com, a leading Chinese job finding platform, said she would not say “there is prejudice against career women”. Feng said Chinese women shoulder more family responsibility. “It is not only about maternity leave; a female employee might only fully get back to work after three to five years after having her first child.”
Wang Yixin, a senior employment adviser, said the positive side is that more companies are trying to attract more talents by providing support to career women: “Different from before, it is not only employers choosing employees. Many talents, including professional career women, also choose employers,” said Wang. “According to our survey, many large companies are very open to their employees’ choice of. having a second child.”
1. In Paragraph 1, the end of one-child policy has great effect on ________.| A．women | B．women and families |
| C．bosses | D．women and employers |
| A．have no effect on career women |
| B．have a positive effect on women's career |
| C．have a negative effect on women's career |
| D．have both positive and negative effects on career women |
| A．There isn't prejudice against career women. |
| B．The effect is only limited to maternity leave. |
| C．There is much more prejudice against career women. |
| D．Women can't fully come back to work for a long period. |
| A．Responsibilities of Career Women |
| B．Effects of Two-child Policy on Women |
| C．Disadvantages of Raising Two Children |
| D．Different Attitudes of Employers to Women |
