Understanding youth online experiences and mental health: development and validation of the digital activity and feelings inventory (DAFI)

Kostyrka-Allchorne, Katarzyna, Bourgaize, Jake, A., Murray, Stoilova, Mariya ORCID: 0000-0001-9601-7146, Abbas, I., Azeri, Eliz, Hollis, Chris, Townsend, Ellen, Livingstone, Sonia ORCID: 0000-0002-3248-9862 and Sonuga-Barke, EJS. (2025) Understanding youth online experiences and mental health: development and validation of the digital activity and feelings inventory (DAFI). International Journal of Methods in Psychiatric Research. ISSN 1049-8931 (In Press)

Text (Kostyrka-Allchorne et al 2025 Understanding youth online experiences and mental health Author version) - Accepted Version Pending embargo until 1 January 2100. Download (357kB)

Abstract

Objectives: We created the Digital Activity and Feelings Inventory (DAFI) to measure youth digital activities and the psychological reactions they evoke, established its psychometric properties and tested its validity in predicting mental health relative to screen time estimates. Methods: An initial pool of items was generated using the existing research on youth digital activity and mental health and further refined via consultations with experts and young people (online youth panel sessions, n = 14). The participants (n = 383, mean age = 19 years) completed the resulting DAFI alongside established measures of depression, anxiety, wellbeing, and screen time. The DAFI factor structure, reliability and predictive validity were tested. Results: Exploratory factor analyses identified five digital activity subscales: Risky Content, Risky Interactions, Social Comparison, Leisure Activities and Social Engagement and three psychological reactions subscales: Negative Self-Reactions, Negative Stress Reactions, and Positive Reactions. Internal consistency and test-retest reliability were high. Social Comparison and Negative Self-Reactions, but not screen time, independently predicted depression and anxiety symptoms. Positive Reactions, lack of Negative Self-Reactions, lower screen time and Social Engagement predicted wellbeing. Conclusion: The DAFI is a reliable measure of digital activities and associated psychological reactions and predicts youth mental health better than screen time.

Item Type:	Article
Additional Information:	© 2025 The Author(s)
Divisions:	Media and Communications
Subjects:	B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > BF Psychology R Medicine > RJ Pediatrics > RJ101 Child Health. Child health services T Technology R Medicine > RC Internal medicine > RC0321 Neuroscience. Biological psychiatry. Neuropsychiatry
Date Deposited:	17 Jun 2025 09:03
Last Modified:	17 Jun 2025 13:33
URI:	http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/128424

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