Digital mental health for young people: sustainably managing stress and anxiety

Purpose This paper aims to evaluate the impact of digital mental health interventions (DMHIs) and their associated tools on stress management among young adults, their acceptability and usage under the theoretical underpinnings that explain these dynamics. Design/methodology/approach A systematic literature search was conducted on Scopus and Google Scholar to screen relevant studies from 2015 to 2025 using the keywords “digital mental health,” “stress management” and “young people,” which provided 17 related research papers from Scopus and 17,000 articles from Google Scholar. To identify common themes and trends, 48 research articles from Scopus and Google Scholar platforms are included for analysis upon full-text screening to address research questions within a framework of thematic synthesis. Findings The research illustrates the promise and complexity of DMHIs, including specific tools such as mobile apps and chatbots for stress management among young people, whose acceptance and usage hinge on interacting factors, accessibility, user-friendliness, personalization, social support and cultural considerations. These insights collectively point toward a future in which flexible, personalized and community-oriented DMHIs become core tools for sustainable stress management and anxiety relief among young people. Research limitations/implications Many interventions, a lack of long-term data with high dropout rates, hinder conclusive evidence on the sustainability of DMHIs and their associated tools. Future research should use scalable, longitudinal, mixed-method studies to address privacy issues, cultural fitness and algorithmic accountability. Practical implications Incorporating user-centric features, personalization, intuitive interfaces and cultural adaptability ensures robust data governance and observing ethical guidelines. Hybrid or modular approaches can accommodate the severity of cases in different technological contexts. Strategies of gamification and incremental goal setting may improve long-term engagement and reduce dropout in DMHIs. Social implications With the capacity to significantly improve the mental health of young people, digital mental health tools provide accessible and effective interventions, reducing barriers to traditional care and potentially narrowing health-care disparities by reaching underserved and at-risk youth populations. Originality/value This research comprehensively evaluates digital mental health tools for stress management among adolescents and young adults, allowing for the inevitable changes that take place in developing tools and health-care policies regarding prevention and early interventions. It also offers fresh insights into how specific mechanisms, design elements and contextual factors drive the efficacy of DMHIs and their associated tools. The research contributes practical insights into more applicable digital devices with well-coordinated human-machine interfaces in health-care delivery.