Youth in an Age of Destruction: The Potential for Evolution
By Joh Covington, Skyline Desk Chief
ALPINE- At the height of Covid and after months of strictly remote classes in the wake of the shelter in places mandates, Sul Ross State University and many other public places reopened in the late fall of 2020. However, college life would not be the same and would most likely never resemble previous generation’s experiences again.
Each student’s experience has been unique, but one thing that they all have in common is the fact that they each have experienced varying degrees of isolation. Many experts have become concerned how this generation, the next to inherit the job and housing market, will face the world that has to be consistently rebuilt, trauma after trauma.
The side effects of these damaging events are slowly beginning to reveal themselves. College freshmen of 2020 are soon to be seniors, graduating into a foreign world that their predecessors are also just discovering themselves. Personal, professional, and political arenas are ever evolving.
The first confirmed case of Covid-19, within the U.S. was in Jan. 20, of 2020. However, research from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention points to the theory that it may have been within the country’s borders as early as Dec. 2019.
Besides Covid, and all its versions, in the last two years, college aged adults have seen an increasing amount of natural disasters, political unrest and rebellion, as well as damage to the precarious, and arguable, peace between countries.
Politically, there are pros and cons that recent years have developed. While there has been an increase in young voter turnout, there has also been a decrease in the trust of the political systems, primarily those in office.
Jessica Velasco, Sul Ross political science and public administration program advisor and assistant professor, believes that last few years have led to a kind of distrust of authority.
“I think the current political and social climate has made students more cynical about government but perhaps more likely to vote. The number of current issues that can potentially impact college-aged citizens has also made people more aware of those issues,” said Velasco.
Instead of these current issues causing students to “switch” allegiances, they seem to have strengthened already established political beliefs. “Our polarized political climate has made people "double down" on their party allegiance,” said Velasco.
Students also seem more willing to share beliefs that may have been less socially acceptable in previous years. “In the last year, I do feel that certain types of comments have been more common, comments that the political climate over the last 5-6 years have made more acceptable,” said Velasco
“Since the beginning of the pandemic, after the CDC altered its recommendations about mask wearing and then had its credibility challenged after that change, I believe that we have been in a credibility crisis,” said Velasco.
“What I mean by this is that it has become widely acceptable to distrust experts and science, putting us in a situation where everything is challenged. This makes teaching anything more difficult, because many in the general public, students included, hold the opinions of YouTube "experts" at higher levels than government experts,” said Velasco.
Another effect that this generation has undergone is drastic changes to mental health issues and their options in how to handle them. While there has been an uptick in mental health awareness initiatives, students’ mental health has also suffered.
In an interview survey study performed by 20 undergraduate researchers at Texas A&M, it was found that, “Alarmingly, 44% of the participants reported experiencing an increased level of depressive thoughts.” It is worth noting this study was based on the data received from 192 college students.
“Depression levels among students, reported in several recent studies have varied between 29% and 38%, which may suggest an uptick in pandemic-related depressive symptoms among college students,” the study found.
While many studies are based on the research found by polling those openly discussing their mental health, it’s nearly impossible to find truly accurate numbers. Many people dealing with mental health problems refrain from speaking out.
“To cope with stress and anxiety imposed by COVID-19, college students reported seeking support from others but were mainly using various self-management methods,” the participants of the study relayed.
“The majority of the participants, 76%, with increased stress due to the outbreak of COVID-19 explained that they were using various means to help themselves cope with stress and anxiety during the pandemic,” said the study.
“The maladaptive coping behaviors such as denial and disengagement have been shown to be significant predictors of depression among young adults. In contrast, adaptive coping such as acceptance and proactive behaviors are known to positively impact mental health. Our findings suggest that the majority of our participants exhibited maladaptive coping behaviors,” the study found.
“Participants described several barriers to seeking help, such as lack of trust in counseling services and low comfort levels in sharing mental health issues with others, which may be indicative of stigma. Perceiving social stigma as a barrier to seeking help and availing counseling services and other support is common among students,” the study found.
The researchers used this study to urge for immediate attention to and support for students and other vulnerable groups who have mental health issues. And to bring attention to the negative effects. They believe that the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in a widespread forced adoption of telehealth services to deliver psychiatric and mental health support, the efficiency of which has yet to be studied.
Another study, by Mental Health America, found that the number of people looking online for help with their mental health increased significantly from 2019-2021. In 2021, over 5.4 million people took a mental health screen, representing a nearly 500% increase over the number of people who completed a screening in 2019 and a 103% increase over 2020.
Across all screens, 76% of users in the U.S. scored positive or with moderate to severe symptoms of a mental health condition in 2021. This was a 2% increase over the average in 2019 and a 1% increase over the percentage of individuals who screened at risk in 2020.
The causes of the overall stress have evolved over the last three years. In 2020, the main concern was for personal and familial health. The death toll, financial losses, and uncertainty have led many to display PTSD-like symptoms.
In an interview with Dr. Itai Danovitch, a psychiatrist with the Cedar-Sinai clinical program, the Cedars Sinai blog found that while “more than half a million Americans have died from COVID-19. Thousands more suffered from financial losses compounded by businesses, schools and daycares shutting down. The fallout of COVID-19 is real—and for a subset of Americans, it's a textbook trigger for post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD.”
"While there's still a stigma around mental health issues, the traumatic pandemic we're beginning to emerge from has shined a light on the importance of mental and emotional health. PTSD is treatable. The goal is to help people access treatment," said Danovitch.
The question remains, how will these stressors on this young generation change the world in the near future? Will the pressure reform the current status quo into something stronger, or will it break under the demand.
Psychological and physical healthcare will undoubtably change. The political arena will also likely and drastically change as young voters, who have matured in a very insecure climate, go to the polls. Even the next generation of politicians and activists will have a very different docket of experience and priorities than the current one.