Several famous personalities (including royalty, celebrities, investors and high-ranking technology company executives) recently highlighted the ill effects of social media on the mental health of youngsters. On the other hand, there are some who have made it their life’s mission to advocate children’s safety and emotional well-being in a social media- and smartphone-obsessed world. Since […]

Mortality rates in people with psychotic disorders are much higher than the general population. Life expectancy rates are estimated to be 15-20 years lower among individuals with psychotic disorders. This gap appears to have widened during the last few decades. So far, most concerns regarding premature mortality in patients with psychotic disorders have centered on […]

With technology becoming an overwhelming part of everyday lives, there are growing concerns regarding its impact on behavioral health and well-being, especially among youngsters. Recent efforts to highlight such concerns are not coming from parents, educators or psychologists but from former employees, senior executives and investors who were instrumental in building/founding some of the world’s […]

With digital technology becoming a dominant feature of everyday life, particularly in developed countries, psychologists are concerned about its potential fallout among children and adolescents. A recent report published by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) made the grim observation that digital technology was “increasingly changing childhood.”  A previous nationally representative survey of American teens […]

By Lise Millay Stevens There is something rotten in Denmark. Maybe it is wafting over from the U.S. health insurance industry. CNN reports that a former Aetna medical director admitted, under oath, that he never looked at patient records prior to approving or denying care, relying instead on the recommendations from nurses at the insurance […]

In what appears to be among the deadliest mass shootings in American history, 17 people were killed and many more injured in a firing spree at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida on Feb.14, 2018. As per police reports, the suspect has been identified as Nikolas Cruz (19), a former student who was […]

Hungarian-American billionaire investor, philanthropist and political activist George Soros has sounded a warning against “giant IT platform companies” and internet monopolies. Delivering his remarks at the World Economic Forum (WEF) at Davos, Switzerland in January 2018, Soros singled out Google and Facebook, alleging that they had become “obstacles to innovation” and had caused a variety […]

Tyler Hilinski, 21, a quarterback at Washington State University (WSU), was found dead in his apartment on Jan. 16, 2018. His death, caused by a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head, was ruled an apparent suicide. While police refrained from disclosing the contents of the suicide note found beside his body or attributing a motive […]

People addicted to substances like alcohol or drugs tend to abuse them to such an extent that it takes control of their life. Like most unhealthy behaviors, addiction is a serious problem that is greatly influenced by one’s family. Various factors, such as relationships, proximity, communication and parental disapproval, play a major role in influencing […]

Many teens, especially those in new relationships, may wrongly assume that physical violence is the only form of dating abuse. The verbal or emotional cruelty in relationships can often be ignored simply because teens do not realize that such exploitation also constitutes dating abuse. To sensitize teens about the adverse impacts of emotional dating abuse, […]