Podcast

Our digital lives and our wellbeing

What does internet and smartphone use do to wellbeing, especially for the young?

This episode looks at our increasingly digital lives and how they affect our wellbeing. Our guests are Dr. Daniel Wheatley, Reader in the Department of Management at the University of Birmingham, and Abigail Coxon, principal Economist at the Youth Futures Foundation.

Read a transcript

What else is Understanding Society doing?

Photo of a UK town from above showing houses and the countryside beyond.

Join our Strategic Oversight Board

Could you help us develop Understanding Society?

29 Jan 2026

Social life during COVID-19 in France, Germany, Italy and the UK

How did the pandemic change our lives, institutions and attitudes?

27 Jan 2026

Photo of a child on a tyre swing in a playground.

Insights 2026: Children and young people’s futures

Registration is now open for our Insights 2026 policy conference - book your place

12 Jan 2026

someone leans on a balcony overlooking a lake with trees around it. We see only their arms. Photo by Ümit Bulut on Unsplash

The disappearance of the hump shape in illbeing by age

Lifetime happiness trend changes as youth mental health suffers.

12 Jan 2026

Email newsletter

ESRC Institute for Social and Economic Research University of Essex

The Economic and Social Research Council is the primary funder of the study
The Study is led by a team at the Institute for Social and Economic Research (ISER) at the University of Essex.

Visit our Bluesky Page