‘Digital Insight and Agency Scale’ (DIAS): a novel tool to illuminate young people’s agency in mitigating the negative impact of digital activities on their mental health

Objectives. Excessive time spent online is believed to negatively impact youth mental health; however, simplified screen-time measures fail to consider young people’s agency and digital activity management skills. We developed and validated a novel tool, the Digital Insight and Agency Scale (DIAS), to better understand different aspects of young people’s online agency and explore their links to youth mental health. Methods. Participants (n=383; age 16-25 years, mean=19.0, SD=1.7; 48.8% White, 30.2% South/East Asian, 8.6% Black) completed the DIAS questionnaire and standardised measures of anxiety, depression and wellbeing. The factor structure, reliability of the DIAS and associations with mental health were examined. Results. Participants reported specific negative impacts of digital engagement on their daily functioning in the previous two weeks, especially less sleep. Seventy-eight per cent were worried about the negative impact of digital activity, and 82% engaged in one or more risk management actions, including Enhancing Positive Engagement, Coping Actions, and/or Reducing Engagement. Higher levels of mental health problems were associated with more worries and increased efforts to manage digital activity. Conclusions. Most young people displayed agency in managing their digital activity, suggesting that this could be leveraged in interventions, rather than focusing solely on reducing access and time spent online.