America’s youngest adults – known as Gen Z – are struggling with fear, anxiety, poor self-esteem and lack of peer support. People ages 18-27 years old grapple with these issues more than older generations, according to new State of the Bible research. However the new findings also show that engagement with the Bible greatly reduces anxiety in Gen Zers and others.

The American Bible Society introduced annual State of the Bible reports in 2011. The research looks at Americans’ relationships with God, faith and Scripture. The latest findings appear in chapter six, Gen Z – Hope and Challenge, of the 2004 State of the Bible study report.

Struggling with Anxiety

Nineteen percent of Gen Z adults reported having mental health problems, as did 7 percent of older Americans, noted John Farquhar Plake, the American Bible Society’s chief innovation officer and editor-in-chief of the annual State of the Bible reports.

America’s youngest adults are “really struggling with their emotional and mental health,” he added. Gen Z adults “have about twice the level of clinical anxiety symptoms” as older adults and may experience:

• Difficulty sleeping
• Trouble concentrating
• Restlessness
• Uneasiness
• Apprehensiveness

Sources of Anxiety

Gen Z adults scored the highest anxiety levels among Americans. However, anxiety decreased in each succeeding generation, and baby boomers scored only half the anxiety of Generation Z.

One major reason for Gen Z’s anxiety is the fact that this generation spends a great deal of time on computers, Plake said. Another is the dramatic social changes that occurred during the Covid pandemic.

Plake explained that most scholars blame “the fact that (Gen Z adults) grew up with screens in their face rather than interacting one on one with others and working out their challenges and their difficulties in face-to-face relationships.”

Gen Z also uses smartphones and other digital technology much more than older Americans. Their childhoods were “rewired,” leading to greater anxiety, depression and fragility, according to social psychologist and author Jonathan Haidt… “children are, in a sense, deprived of childhood.”

Major Fears

Major fears of the Gen Z group include:

• Grief and loss
• Family stress or trauma
• Financial stress or hardship

“These are not hypothetical fears,” the report noted. “…more than half of respondents across the generations have been exposed to trauma. Just under half of every generation has experienced grief or loss in the past year….

“The level of fear reported by the youngest generation is substantial, and higher than that of any other generation. About three in 10 are extremely fearful regarding each of these matters, and 45 percent of study participants are moderately fearful,” chapter six of the report said

“It’s worth noting that financial stress or hardship is the most common fear of the highest-earning generation in our survey.” To learn more, download the State of the Bible 2024 report here.

Other Significant Fears

But Generation Z’s fears don’t end there. This generation also fears….

• Physical assault (15 percent)
• Sexual assault (17 percent)
• Verbal attacks or bullying (12 percent)
• Racism, bigotry and discrimination (tied with millennials at 12 percent)
• Hostility from people they have offended (10 percent)

Women were more fearful than men on these issues. Some 50 percent said they were moderately or extremely fearful of physical assault as compared to 19 percent of men, the report noted. The greatest difference between the sexes was sexual assault.

Gen Z adults also were more likely to have extreme fears of war, civil unrest and mass shootings than other generations, while more millennials fear the effects of global warming. Three out of four people ages 60 or older said they are moderately or extremely afraid of war or civil unrest, the report said.

Bible Greatly Reduces Anxiety 

The study noted a major difference between Gen Z adults who read and applied the Bible to their lives and those who didn’t. “We see the Bible promoting trust and prayer as powerful responses to anxiety,” the report said.

“So, do people who engage with Scripture report less anxiety? Yes, and the difference is stunning.”

Engaging with the Bible greatly reduces anxiety.

“Throughout all generations, but especially among Generation Z, scripture engagement is associated with lower anxiety levels. When Gen Zers engage with Scripture, their levels of anxiety are comparable to those of baby boomers and older,” according to Plake.

“There’s something that happens when we begin to hear God speaking to us through His word that takes all of the anxieties and quiets them,” he noted.

Self-Acceptance

Researchers asked all participants whether they were comfortable with “who I have become.” Fifty-five percent said the statement was “very true,” 37 percent said it was “moderately true” and 8 percent said it was “minimally true.” Older people had the highest scores, and Gen Z adults had the lowest.

Participants also were asked whether they agreed with the statement, “I feel affirmed by my peers.” Forty-three percent said it was “very true,” 47 percent said it was “moderately true” and 9 percent said it was “minimally true.” Again, Gen Zers had the lowest ranking.

“The lower score from the youngest generation may reflect high expectations, bullying, cliques, and the often-difficult dynamics of social media,” the study surmised.

Not surprisingly, people with the highest levels of self-acceptance and peer affirmation had the lowest levels of anxiety.

Trauma

Researchers asked participants whether they had ever experienced or witnessed “physical, psychological or emotional trauma” that caused “deep suffering.”

Thirty-seven percent said they had personally experienced trauma, 21 percent said they had witnessed a family member’s trauma, and 16 percent said they had witnessed someone else’s trauma.

The Gen X group encountered the most trauma and baby boomers, the least. About half of all participants said they sometimes feel the effects of trauma, while 16 percent said they never suffered side effects and 9 percent said they always did. Side effects included:

• Nightmares
• Sleeplessness
• Flashbacks
• Panic attacks

Hypothetical Help

Fifty-seven percent of participants said they would seek professional counseling after trauma. Thirty-four percent indicated they would talk to a trusted family member, 24 percent said they would turn to a church or faith community, and 35 percent pointed to the internet for help.

And although engaging with the Bible greatly reduces anxiety, Gen Z adults were the least likely group to seek help from a church or faith community or talk to a professional counselor. They were most likely to talk to a trusted family member or turn to social media for help.

Hypothetical help aside, about a quarter of Gen X, Gen Z and millennials said they have seen a mental health professional within the last year. Only 12 percent of baby boomers said they had done so.

Spiritual Well-being                                            

Research consistently shows that Scripture Engagement makes a “huge” difference in mental health. People who engage with the Bible score significantly higher on self-acceptance and significantly lower on anxiety.

And although engaging with the Bible improves mental health, the report emphasized that it isn’t a quick fix.

“We still feel the pain of loss, the after-effects of trauma, and uncertainty about the future,” it noted. But through Scripture engagement, “we find hope in our connection with a God who loves to help and heal.”

What’s Next?

The American Bible Society will release the last three chapters of this year’s State of the Bible https://sotb.research.bible/ report in October, November and December. The topics will be:

• The “Nones” and the “Nominals”
• Loneliness and the Bible
• Philanthropy and more…

State of the Bible findings are based on a nationally representative survey performed by NORC at the University of Chicago for the American Bible Society. “The data came from 2,506 online interviews with American adults in all 50 states and the District of Columbia,” the society said.