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This page is an AI-assisted Turkish summary of the study presented at the 26th World Congress of Psychiatry. The study belongs to the presenting authors; please refer to the original source when citing it.

EV1355

Evolutionary mismatch amplified by urbanization: algorithmic pathogenesis and the digital pandemic in youth mental health

URBANIZATION-AMPLIFIED EVOLUTIONARY MISMATCH: ALGORITHMIC PATHOGENESIS AND THE DIGITAL PANDEMIC IN YOUTH MENTAL HEALTH

The poster explains the digital pandemic among young people through a socioneurobiological model that integrates neurobiological vulnerability, urbanization-related evolutionary mismatch, and channels of algorithmic contagion, and proposes therapeutic artificial intelligence interventions as countermeasures.

The poster aims to present a conceptual model showing how the digital pandemic operates in youth mental health through evolutionary mismatch amplified by urbanization; the model is based on a study published in Curr Opin Psychiatry 2026;39:269-279. The model identifies four components: neurobiological vulnerability (the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis, circadian dysfunction, and the gut–brain axis, alongside depression, anxiety, disturbances in self-image, self-harm, and suicidal behaviors), urbanization (evolutionary mismatch, play-based childhood versus phone-based childhood, chronic academic and parenting stress, virtual social stress, and an inflammatory lifestyle), digital pandemic contagion, and therapeutic artificial intelligence interventions. Algorithmic pathogenesis is defined as the process by which artificial intelligence algorithms act as the pandemic’s primary engine of contagion by optimizing engagement rather than well-being. Content curation within echo chambers traps young people in filter bubbles, blocking exposure to different perspectives and increasing social comparison and perceived social threat; features such as infinite scrolling trigger dopaminergic pathways, overriding cognitive control and disrupting sleep; and algorithms’ prioritization of high-arousal content, such as anger-provoking material, leads to emotional contagion and chronic psychological distress. Table 1 in the poster details contagion through three roles: artificial intelligence algorithms, malicious users (cyberbullying, dissemination of harmful ideologies, abuse), and users with undiagnosed mental disorders (unfiltered unconscious expression, manipulation and amplification of emotions). Proposed countermeasures include online screening and detection of psychopathological digital phenotypes and behaviors, Social AI, AI-assisted group psychotherapy, and peer support systems. The poster presents a conceptual framework and contains no sample, measurements, or statistical findings.

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