New data from youth mental health service, ReachOut, shows that the cost of living is contributing to high levels of study stress for students across the country, and that this cohort of digital natives are finding relief online.
In a survey of over 1000 young people from across Australia (conducted July 2024), almost a quarter (23%), indicated that a driver of study stress was worry about balancing study with work given the high cost of living. Other cost of living related study stress concerns for young people included worry about getting a job (31%) and worry about not being able to lead the life they had planned (26%).
17 per cent of young people surveyed indicated that study stress had a major impact on their wellbeing or their mental health over the past 12 months. Concerningly, more than a quarter (26%) of young people surveyed were so stressed about study and exams that they had to take time off work or study, which may also impact their income.
Amidst high levels of study stress, the digital space stood out as a key source of support for young people. After friends and family, social media was the third most popular place young people sought support for their study stress concerns (26%).
Young people are also going online to help them cope with study stress. This included: listening to music (50%), watching TV and movies (42%), spending time on social media (40%), watching online videos (36%) and gaming (21%). Two thirds (67%) of students who turned to these kinds of online sources to cope with study stress said the content was a distraction or something that provided them with a break.
CEO of ReachOut, Gary Groves, said that it was important to understand the drivers of study stress and highlighted ReachOut's new support for students in the lead up to Year 12 exams.
"ReachOut's research on study stress is an important reminder that young people are not immune to cost of living pressures. The data shows that students are concerned about balancing work and study, their future work opportunities and their future lifestyles.
"As students across the country embark on their final preparations for Year 12 exams we are encouraging them to take a proactive approach to their mental health and to seek support if they need it. As this new data shows, seeking support and coping with feelings of stress will look different for everyone and going online can be a great place to start.
"This year, ReachOut is providing additional support for young people when it comes to study stress. We have an AI-driven tool, which allows young people to express their mental health needs in their own words and which then simplifies pathways to support. And, we have expanded access to ReachOut's one-to-one online text-based chat support service PeerChat to include 16 and 17 year olds during this period when we know study stress is a particular concern for so many students," he said.
Young people can visit ReachOut.com for new and updated content on exam and study stress, to access ReachOut's AI-tool and to connect with peer support via the Online Community and PeerChat.
Parents and carers can visit ReachOut.com/Parents for new and updated content about supporting teens when it comes to study and exam stress and a free parents coaching service.
