Tuesday 9 June 2026 3:00pm to 4:00pm
Hybrid: Cambridge/Teams
Members of the University may attend in-person at the Old Cavendish Lab, Free School Lane (enter opposite Student Services).
The talk will also be streamed online for those unable to be there in person and for those external to the University. Please sign up below, to receive the Teams link.
About
Talk abstract
Adolescence is a sensitive period for the emergence of mental health difficulties, characterised by heightened social sensitivity and increased susceptibility to peer influence.
In this talk, I will present some of our recent work examining how young people’s mental health is shaped by, and reflected in, the mental health of those around them.
Drawing on longitudinal social network and experimental studies, I will highlight how peer processes contribute to the clustering of mental health difficulties within friendship networks, and how exposure to peers’ mental health can influence individuals’ own self-reported symptoms.
I will also discuss co-rumination within adolescent social networks as one potential mechanism underlying these effects, and present findings from our recent pilot single-session intervention designed to reduce co-rumination among young people.
Contact
Louise Gray