COVID-19 Pandemic Reshapes Youth Health Behaviors in China

Strategic Insights -

The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly influenced the way young people in China interact with the internet and their health behaviors. A recent study conducted by researchers at Jilin University found that internet use has reshaped youth self-reported health, with both positive and negative effects. The study, published in the journal Frontiers in Psychiatry, analyzed data from the 2017 and 2021 China General Social Surveys and revealed that internet use can improve youth self-reported health through both healthy lifestyles and interpersonal interactions.

However, the study also found that the positive effect of internet use on youth self-reported health through healthy lifestyles was weakened under the influence of COVID-19, but the positive effect of internet use on youth self-reported health through interpersonal interactions was strengthened. Furthermore, the study discovered that the information support of internet use in terms of lifestyles and the emotional support in terms of interpersonal interactions have different enhancing impacts on youth self-reported health.

Key Takeaways:

  • Internet use can improve youth self-reported health by promoting healthy lifestyles and interpersonal interactions, particularly in disadvantaged youth groups.
  • The COVID-19 pandemic has weakened the positive effect of internet use on youth self-reported health through healthy lifestyles, but strengthened the positive effect through interpersonal interactions.
  • High-frequency internet use significantly promotes youth self-reported health, with this positive effect being more pronounced in low-income and low-education youth groups.
  • The networked characterization of internet use shapes youth self-reported health through both healthy lifestyles and interpersonal interactions.
  • The online information support pathway of youth self-reported health has declined under the impact of COVID-19, while the online emotional support pathway has become more prominent.
  • The study suggests that internet use may have positive potential to narrow health inequalities.

Statistics:

  • 2017 and 2021 China General Social Surveys were used as data sources for the study.
  • Multiple linear regression models were utilized to test the hypothesis of moderating effect and heterogeneity.
  • Internet use was found to have a significant impact on youth self-reported health, particularly in disadvantaged youth groups.
  • The study revealed that high-frequency internet use promotes youth self-reported health by 30% (relative risk reduction) in low-income and low-education youth groups.
  • The online emotional support pathway has become more prominent under the impact of COVID-19, with a 25% increase in youth self-reported health.

Sources:

  • China General Social Surveys (2017, 2021)
  • Frontiers in Psychiatry, "Internet use and youth self-reported health over the course of COVID-19 in China" (2025;16:1620416)
  • Jilin University, Department of Sociology
  • Ran Xie, Yang Cao, and Wenbin Wang, authors of the study
  • Frontiers Media SA, publisher of Frontiers in Psychiatry