Resumo A vivência estudantil na universidade é uma questão pouco investigada e discutida, especialmente nos cursos de Psicologia, assim como o sofrimento que pode acompanhá-la, decorrente sobretudo do contato com o sofrimento psíquico de outras pessoas ou os conteúdos acadêmicos mais diretamente relacionados com a subjetividade humana. Este artigo apresenta dados de uma pesquisa cujo objetivo era o levantamento das vivências acadêmicas dos estudantes de Psicologia de uma universidade pública do interior paulista. Na coleta de dados foi utilizado um instrumento, contendo uma questão de identificação sociodemográfica, um conjunto de 20 itens de múltipla escolha (formulado como numa escala do tipo likert de cinco pontos) e cinco questões abertas, que foi respondido por 119 estudantes dos cinco anos do curso. Os resultados, após serem submetidos às análises quantitativa e qualitativa, permitiram verificar que, na Escala Likert, os alunos apresentaram, no geral, percepção favorável do curso. No entanto, nas questões abertas referentes às vivências e ao sofrimento psíquico foram apresentados indicadores explícitos de mal-estar universitário. Na última questão, que indagava sobre a vivência de sofrimento psíquico, 107 dos 119 estudantes responderam afirmativamente. A partir destes dados, se discute a necessidade urgente de ações, tanto por parte dos gestores universitários quanto das entidades que fiscalizam a formação de psicólogos.

Objective: We aim to investigate the direction of causality of the association between adolescent video game playing and later development of ADHD symptoms using a population-based sample of Canadian Youth. Method: The present study is based on longitudinal cohort data ( N = 1,467). Youth self-reported weekly hours of video game playing as well as ADHD symptoms at both 12 and 13 years of age. Results: Cross-lagged panel model were estimated to examine how adolescent video game playing prospectively contributes to ADHD symptoms while simultaneously considering how adolescent ADHD symptoms may prospectively contribute to videogame playing. Analyses revealed a significant positive association between adolescent video games playing at age 12 and ADHD symptoms at age 13. Youth ADHD symptoms at age 12 did not predict video game use at age 13. Conclusion: Our results help clarify the direction of causality of the association between video game playing and ADHD symptoms and provide evidence that video game playing can represent a risk factor for the development of attention problems in early adolescence.

Past research suggests that internet use can increase the risks of internalizing symptoms in adolescents. However, bidirectional relationships between adolescent internet use and anxiety symptoms have received very little attention. Furthermore, few studies have examined these links according to sex. The present study attempts to fill this gap by investigating longitudinal associations between Canadian boys’ and girls’ internet use and symptoms of generalized anxiety and social anxiety using data from the Quebec longitudinal Study of Child Development. A sample of 1324 adolescents (698 girls, 626 boys) self-reported the number of hours per week they spent on the internet and their symptoms of generalized and social anxiety at ages 15 and 17. We estimated two cross-lagged panel models with social or generalized anxiety symptoms and internet use at age 15 predicting those same variables at age 17. Sex was used as a grouping variable and socioeconomic status was included as a control variable. Internet use at 15 predicted generalized and social anxiety symptoms at age 17 in girls, but not boys. Social and generalized anxiety symptoms at age 15 did not predict internet use at age 17 for both boys and girls. These results suggest that internet use can be a significant risk factor for the development of anxiety symptoms in adolescent girls. Girls may be more vulnerable to the negative effects of internet use due to increased sensitivity to social comparisons. Thus, helping girls develop healthier internet use habits should be a target for promoting their mental health.

Objective: To assess associations between early childhood screen time trajectories and problematic media use scores by age 5.5. Methods: The present study is based on a prospective, community-based convenience sample of 315 parents of preschoolers, from Canada studied at the ages of 3.5 (2020), 4.5 (2021), and 5.5 (2022) during the Covid-19 pandemic. Parent-reported screen use at the ages of 3.5, 4.5, and 5.5 was used to estimate preschooler screen use trajectories. Using latent growth modeling, we identified low (mean = 0.9 h/day, 23%), average (mean = 3.0 h/day, 56%), and high (mean = 6.38 h/day, 21%) screen time trajectories. Parents reported child problematic media using the Problematic Media Use Measure – Short Form (PMUM-SF). Results: A multiple regression, adjusted for child sex, effortful control and parent education and stress revealed that compared to children in the low screen time trajectory, children in the high screen time trajectory had higher problematic media use scores at age 5.5 ( β = 0.378, p < 0.001). In addition, children in the average screen time trajectory scored higher than children in the low screen time trajectory ( β = 0.229, p ≤ 0.001). Conclusion: Our findings suggest that higher screen use in early childhood is associated with an increased risk for the development of dysregulated media use, which can interfere with family functioning. As such, parents should be encouraged to follow screen time recommendations of ≤1 h/day for children between the ages of 2 and 5.