Abstract
INTRODUCTION: The digital "revolution" brings along consequences at the individual level, consequences in terms of mental health, both positive and negative. Therefore, the purpose of the meta-analysis presented in this work is to investigate, in the adult population, the associated factors (psychological distress, anxiety, depression, stress, burnout, loneliness and social isolation, insomnia, and psychological well-being (PWB)) by means of digital technology represented by Artificial Intelligence (AI), remote work (RW), smartphone, social media (SM), and smart technologies used in tourism (STT). METHODS: The meta-analysis was performed between June 2020-June 2024, and the protocol was registered in the PROSPERO database (CRD42024560285). Forty-seven papers involving a total of 36,100 participants were included in the meta-analysis. Standard meta-analytic procedures were applied, and correlation coefficients (r) were used as measures of effect size. RESULTS: The highest positive value of the effect was obtained for the association between PWB and the use of the digital environment (AI, RW, and STT) r = 0.435, and the highest negative effect value was obtained for the association between burnout and the use of the digital environment (AI and RW) r = -0.478. The moderation analysis further clarified the role of contextual variables. DISCUSSION/CONCLUSION: This meta-analysis highlights that digital technologies have both positive and negative effects on adult mental health, reflecting the complex impact of the digital environment. SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION: https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO/search, CRD42024560285.