DIORA combines a mix of qualitative and quantitative approaches. We will conduct an observational study of mid-adolescent development with three assessment points: baseline (T1), 6 (T2), and 12 (T3) months. We will aim to recruit a minimum of 276 adolescents aged between 13 and 14 years from secondary schools in the United Kingdom and one caregiver for each adolescent. All study questionnaires will be completed online.
We will also conduct qualitative interviews to get a detailed account of adolescents’ own understanding of their digital engagement, how they are affected by it and how they use digital technologies for the self-management of their mental health.
The data analyses will chart a range of models to examine the direct and indirect associations between digital activity, the reactions it induces, depression and wellbeing, and individual and contextual mediators and moderators drawing on the structural equation modelling framework.
As part of DIORA, we developed the Digital Activity and Feelings Inventory (DAFI) which measures distinct dimensions of digital activity and the reactions evoked by them. The DAFI is available for research use under a CC BY-NC-SA licence. Find out more about using the DAFI.
Access the study protocol.
DIORA was preceded by a pilot project on Adolescent mental health and development in the digital world involving a multi-stakeholder qualitative study on the risks and benefits of digital technology use.