Logo

FR

McGill University & LADY DAVIS INSTITUTE

Digital Culture

and Mental Health

Digital culture influences the identity, lifestyle and social relationships of people, as well as their sources of stress and resilience. Our lab's research aims to understand how digital media practices influence mental health and to support the adaptation of psychosocial services and policies to people's digital culture.

Join our lab

Affiliated with

McGill University, Division of Social and Transcultural Psychiatry

Lady Davis Institute

Affiliated with

McGill University, Division of Social and Transcultural Psychiatry

Lady Davis Institute

Our Vision

At the heart of our work is the promotion of well-being, with a focus on youth. To do so, we aim to understand the positive and negative impacts of digital technologies on people's lives, evaluate the effects of policies that concern them, and develop innovative mental health interventions in light of their digital culture.

We follow three key principles:

1. Working closely with knowledge users such as youth to foreground their priorities and experiences.

2. Collaborating across disciplines to get the big picture.

3. Involving partners across sectors—such as healthcare, education, and community organizations—to develop multi-layered approaches.

Our Vision

At the heart of our work is the promotion of well-being, with a focus on youth. This includes understanding the positive and negative impacts of digital technologies on people's lives, evaluating the effects of policies that concern them, and developing innovative mental health interventions in light of their digital culture.

We follow three key principles:

1. Working closely with knowledge users such as youth to foreground their priorities and experiences.

2. Collaborating across disciplines to get the big picture.

3. Involving partners across sectors—such as healthcare, education, and community organizations—to develop multi-layered approaches.

Research Themes

THEME 1

Public policies

How can policies promote safer digital environments for youth while preserving the positive experiences that youth may have online?

THEME 2

Intervention

How should mental health professionals discuss digital culture with youth? How can they help promote safer use of technologies?

THEME 3

Online spaces

How do online communities and platforms shape young people's well-being? How can we intervene in these spaces to promote well-being?

THEME 4

AI chatbots

How do people interact with AI chatbots? What design features and types of use pose risks for mental health?

2026

LAB FOUNDED

6+

aCTIVE MEMBERS

Montreal

LOCATION

Lab Director

Vincent Paquin

MD, PhD, FRCPC

Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at McGill University Psychiatrist at the Jewish General Hospital