Lopes, M.V.V., Davis, C. G., & Goldfield, G. S. (2026). Baseline emotional distress predicts psychological response to a social media reduction intervention in distressed youth: A precision mental health approach. Journal of Affective Disorders, 415, 122426. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2026.122426
Reducing social media use (SMU) leads to small reductions in anxiety and depressive symptoms. However, most studies have been conducted with healthy populations, which may limit observed effects due to floor effects rather than indicating a weak causal link. Youth with elevated anxiety and depression symptoms may be more vulnerable to social media harms and benefit more from reduction, but experimental evidence remains limited for symptomatic samples. The present study examined whether youth with elevated symptoms of anxiety and depression show greater psychological benefits from reducing SMU compared to those with sub-threshold symptoms. A total of 218 out of 260 participants who were randomized to an intervention (reduce SMU to 1 h/day) or control group (no SMU restriction) for three weeks were analysed. Depressive and anxiety symptoms were assessed using CES-D and GAD-7 scales, respectively. At baseline, 75% and 46% of the sample scored above the clinical thresholds for elevated depressive and anxiety symptoms, respectively. Mixed models indicated that baseline anxiety levels moderated the intervention response. Participants above the clinical threshold exhibited significantly greater and clinically meaningful reductions in anxiety symptoms relative to controls compared to those below the threshold. Baseline depressive symptoms severity did not moderate intervention response. Results underscore the strong causal relationship between SMU and anxiety symptoms and suggest that reducing SMU may represent a potential component in the management of anxiety disorders in youth. The intervention reduced depressive symptoms overall, but findings on baseline symptom severity as a moderator of response were inconclusive and require replication.
Davis, C. G., Tabri, N., & Wohl, M. J. A. (2026). Predictors of intention to enroll and enrollment in a responsible gambling pre-commitment tool. International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11469-026-01690-8
Many casinos have introduced pre-commitment tools that allow electronic gaming machine (EGM) players to set a monetary limit. However, uptake tends to be low. We capitalized on the imminent launch of a pre-commitment tool at a large casino in the Northeastern US to explore factors that predict intention and subsequent enrollment. Prior to launch, 802 regular EGM players who were members of the casino’s rewards program completed an online survey about their intentions to enroll (54% women; 37% men; Mage= 54.75, SD =11.88). Whereas 48.8% of the original sample expressed interest in enrolling, by 100 days postlaunch, 6.2% of the linked players had enrolled. A common risk factor (comprising common variance among impulsivity, symptoms of disordered gambling, and low positive play beliefs), along with greater attitudinal loyalty and women’s gender predicted intention to enroll. Propensity for unrestrained play (comprising high impulsivity and low honesty/control) predicted enrollment. Discussion centers on possible reasons for the intention–behavior gap.
Dennis, M. T., & Davis, C. G., (2025). Out of sight but on my mind: Distal stressors, identity concealment, proximal stress, and mental health among sexual or gender minorities. Sexuality Research and Social Policy, 23, 153-168. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13178-025-01131-6
People who identify as Sexual or Gender Minorities (SGMs) tend to report more symptoms of depression and anxiety relative to those who identify as cisgender heterosexuals (non-SGMs). According to the minority stress model, these elevated rates are due to exposure to distal stressors that are disproportionately experienced by SGMs relative to non-SGMs and the proximal manifestations of such exposure. We test this model with an online survey sample of 447 SGM and 171 non-SGM adults. Data were collected June of 2023. Consistent with the model (a) SGMs report significantly more symptoms of anxiety and depression than do nonSGMs, (b) distal forms of stress account for this difference, and (c) distal stressors appear to promote concealment, which in turn is associated with proximal stress, anxiety, and depression in the SGM sample. SGM identity concealment appears to play a more pivotal role in the mechanisms by which environmental stressors lead to anxiety and depression symptoms than previously established. These findings highlight the importance of policies that reduce environmental stressors and, in turn, reduce the necessity for identity concealment among SGMs. Public education initiatives should prioritize reducing stigmatization and creating supportive communities. Efforts to create safe spaces, such as community centers, and to ensure access to relevant healthcare, including gender-affirming care, are important steps in fostering supportive communities.
Davis, C. G., & Goldfield, G. S. (2024). Limiting social media use decreases depression, anxiety, and fear of missing out in youth with emotional distress: A randomized controlled trial. Psychology of Popular Media, 14, 1-11. DOI: 10.1037/ppm0000536
Reports demonstrating modest but significant correlations between heavy social media use (SMU) and poorer mental health in youth have led many to suggest that heavy SMU is culpable. Although many youth may not be harmed by heavy SMU, distressed youth may be particularly vulnerable. The aim of this study was to experimentally examine the effects of reducing SMU on smartphones on symptoms of depression, anxiety, fear of missing out (FoMO), and sleep in youth with emotional distress. A randomized controlled trial was used to assign 220 youth aged 17–25 years to either an intervention or control group. The intervention group was asked to reduce smartphone-based SMU to 1 hr/day for 3 weeks while the control group had no SMU restrictions. SMU was objectively measured daily via tracking systems in smartphones. Mental health and sleep were subjectively assessed at baseline and following the 3-week intervention period. Compared to the control group, the intervention group showed significantly greater reductions in symptoms of depression, anxiety, and FoMO, and greater increases in sleep. No effects of gender were detected. Reducing SMU on smartphones to approximately 1 hr/day may be a feasible, inexpensive, and effective method of increasing sleep and reducing symptoms of depression, anxiety, and FoMO among distressed youth.
Davis, C. G. (2024). Self-concealment, secrecy, and guilt. Journal of Personality, 92, 421-435. https://doi.org/10.1111/jopy.12832
Individuals with a tendency to conceal unflattering information about themselves are more likely to be preoccupied by their secrets and tend to report more negative affect. According to theory, this negative affect is due to selfconcealers’ conflicting motivation to be authentic in their relationship but fear the negative consequences should they reveal their secrets, which promotes illfated attempts to suppress. The purpose of the current study was to test a central component of this model. Two studies of adults who were in a romantic relationship and keeping a secret from their partner (combined N = 635; 67.2% women; Mage = 39.6, SD = 11.9) were surveyed on four biweekly occasions. Multilevel mediation analyses were conducted to test whether preoccupation and suppression mediated the link between self-concealing and negative affect and guilt. The data support the hypotheses. Self-concealers were more preoccupied with and prone to suppress their secret than those low on the trait, which, in turn, predicted greater negative affect and guilt. The findings suggest that self-concealers’ insecurities and fear of the relational consequences of disclosure set the stage for the debilitating cycle of suppression and preoccupation that leaves them feeling anxious and guilty.
Davis, C. G., Wright, G. P., & MacMillan, C. (2023). When secrets come to mind: Preoccupation, suppression, and engagement. European Journal of Social Psychology, 54, 380-395. http://doi.org/10.1002/ejsp.3019
When secrets come to mind, do people try to suppress them or do they engage with them? Whereas earlier research suggested that people try to suppress secrets, recent work suggests that people often engage with their secrets. Although thought suppression tends to be associated with greater distress, engagement may be ameliorative. In two longitudinal studies of 653 adults (55% women; Mage = 41.3, SD = 12.4) keeping a secret from their partner, we show that engagement with and suppression of secrets are highly positively related. Like suppression, the more people engage with secrets, the more negative affect and guilt they report feeling. Longitudinal analyses indicate that whereas changes over time in engagement and suppression both predicted reduced secret preoccupation, reductions in suppression (but not engagement) mediated reductions in guilt and negative affect. These results indicate that suppression and engagement are more intimately connected than previously thought. We found no evidence that engagement was ameliorative.
McLeod, J. & Davis, C. G. (2023). Community peer support among individuals living with spinal cord injury. Journal of Health Psychology, 28 (10), 943-955. https://doi.org/10.1177/13591053231159483
Peer support is widely assumed to help individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI) adjust, yet the evidence is mixed. We propose that peer support may be more likely to promote adjustment when informal support is lacking. To test this hypothesis, 135 individuals living with SCI receiving peer support (46.7% female; M age = 42.36, SD = 14.83) completed an online survey assessing aspects of and satisfaction with the peer support and family/friend support that they were receiving as well as measures of adjustment. Although those reporting receiving more peer support were not any better adjusted than those reporting less, individuals who were more satisfied with the peer support they received reported better adjustment. Moreover, the relation of satisfaction with peer support with depressive symptoms was dependent on the level of family/friend support. These findings suggest that peer support is most effective among those lacking support from family and friends.
Davis, C. G. & Tabri, N. (2023). The secrets that you keep: Secrets and relationship quality. Personal Relationships, 30(2), 620-635. https://doi.org/10.1111/pere.12472
Research indicates that preoccupation with secrets takes a toll on mental health. There is also some evidence to suggest that keeping secrets from one’s romantic partner may harm the relationship as it implies a lack of trust that one’s partner will be supportive. Two 4-wave longitudinal surveys of 609 adults (34.3% men, 65.4% women; M age = 36.4) keeping a secret from their romantic partner was used to assess the lagged effect of preoccupation with the secret on subsequent relationship satisfaction, trust, and emotional intimacy as well as the reverse. Cross-lagged panel modeling with random intercepts indicated that whereas individuals in poorer relationships were more preoccupied with their secrets, there was no evidence for cross-lagged effects. The findings suggest that secrecy may be a symptom — not a cause — of a dissatisfying, distrustful and distant relationship.