Longitudinal associations between informal caring, social network, and psychological distress among adolescents and young adults: modelling within-person effects.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Informal caring is associated with mental health deterioration among young people and impacts their help-seeking ability. Social network can provide social support and mitigate the impact of informal care. However, young carers may avoid identification and withdraw from social networks. Evidence regarding the reciprocal associations between caring, social network, and mental health is scarce. We aimed to investigate the directionality and specificity of the associations among the three factors in young people.

Methods

This study used three consecutive assessment data (2021-2023; T0-T2) from the Japan COVID-19 and Society Internet Survey. We included 5539 young persons aged ≤ 25 years and 25,445 adults aged 26-59 years. Social network was measured using the Lubben

SUBMITTER: Nakanishi M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11752962 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature