Woke People More Likely To Be Anxious, Unhappy And Depressed: Study

A recent Finnish study revealed that people adhering to “woke” beliefs has increased levels of anxiety and depression. The new study published in the Scandinavian Journal of Psychology, revealed a psychological assessment wherein individuals with attitudes adapted toward critical social justice were less happy with their lives.

The rise of critical social justice, which aims to identify and address systemic inequalities across various identity groups, has facilitated discussions on its impact in academia, politics, and everyday lives. The association with social justice which is often involved with concepts like intersectionality, and antiracism, has been both appreciated for its recognition of systemic obstacles encountered by marginalised groups and criticised for its dealing of identity and freedom of speech.

Though debates are in progress around the critical social justice, there has been an apparent lack of empirical data concerning its popularity and outcomes. The first stage of the research involved in creating a pilot scale for evaluating critical social justice attitudes. Their research process involved extensive reading on intersectional feminism, critical race theory, queer theory, and other significant academic disciplines which adds to critical social justice understanding.

Then the pilot survey conducted with 851 adults, and most of them were associated with the University of Turku. After working on their initial assessment tool, researched conducted an extensive national survey with 5,000 participants. In order to reach a larger audience, the survey was distributed via Helsingin Sanomat, a major Finnish newspaper.

The final model of the Critical Social Justice Attitude Scale displayed high reliability and was a good model fit; it means that the scale was dependable across different demographics and contexts. The new research throws light on critical social justice attitudes effectively and their indications in contemporary society.