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. 2025 Mar;35(1):e70016.
doi: 10.1111/jora.70016.

The worldwide impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on adolescents' experiences with family, peers, school, and civic engagement

Susan Branje  1 , Suman Verma  2 , Jennifer E Lansford  3 , Eden Terol  4
Affiliations

The worldwide impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on adolescents' experiences with family, peers, school, and civic engagement

Susan Branje et al. J Res Adolesc. 2025 Mar.

Abstract

During the early years of the 2020s, adolescents worldwide faced the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic. This special section includes four review articles examining how the pandemic influenced youth family relationships, peer relationships, experiences at school, and their civic engagement. These reviews are complemented by four insightful commentaries and five contributions from youth reflecting on their personal experiences during this unprecedented time. Collectively, the reviews, commentaries, and youth perspectives offer a profound and nuanced understanding of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the pathways by which contextual factors either hindered or facilitated positive youth development. They provide guidelines aimed at empowering and supporting youth and their families while also considering the systems in which they are embedded.

Keywords: adolescence; civic engagement; covid‐19 pandemic; family; peers; school.

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References

REFERENCES
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    1. Branje, S., & Morris, A. S. (2021). The impact of the COVID‐19 pandemic on adolescent emotional, social, and academic adjustment. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 31(3), 486–499. https://doi.org/10.1111/jora.12668
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    1. Fivush, R. (2025). The COVID generation: A commentary on how the pandemic altered adolescents' life course. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 35, e13022. https://doi.org/10.1111/jora.13022
Youth Voices
    1. Francis, M. (2025). The new normal: A student's lived experiences during the COVID‐19 pandemic. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 35(1), e13049. https://doi.org/10.1111/jora.13049
    1. Ganjoo, R. (2025). The real lockdown was inside. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 35, e13055.
    1. Hayes, A. S. (2025). A virus, depression, and bonus generational trauma. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 35, e13047.
    1. Krishnamurthy, S., & Kaur, H. (2025). Lockdown's double edge: Past remedies, future uncertainties. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 35, e13050.
    1. Sagaram, S. (2025). Locked down, rising up. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 35, e13048.

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