Girls experience 'devastating' drop in happiness, research finds

Almost half of girls aged between 7-10 have experienced online harm as research warns of a “devastating” downward trend in happiness.

Levels of stress and anxiety amongst this age group are at an all-time high, with more than two-thirds of girls feeling more sad, anxious or worried than before.

Only 25% of girls aged between 7-10 reported that they felt happy most of the time, compared to 43% in 2018.

Girlguiding’s annual Girls’ Attitudes 2021 survey questioned 2,114 females between seven and 21.

Some 18% had encountered a person pretending to be someone else online, while more than 11% had seen obscene pictures.