How daily activity patterns relate to symptoms in young people with mental health conditions

ME scores were significantly lower in all patient diagnosis subgroups compared to the control group.

• Young individuals with anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder, or psychotic disorders exhibited higher levels of 'eveningness' preference compared to healthy controls.
• The psychosis group had higher morningness-eveningness scores than the depression and anxiety groups.
• A greater proportion of 'moderate evening' types was found in the anxiety, depression, and bipolar subgroups relative to controls, with a similar trend in the psychosis group.
• The anxiety and depression subgroups had a significantly higher proportion of 'extreme evening' types compared to the control group.
• In males from the bipolar group, lower morningness-eveningness scores correlated with worse psychological distress, while in females with depression and males with bipolar disorder, lower scores correlated with higher depression severity.
• These findings suggest a link between later chronotypes and increased psychological distress in young people with mental disorders.

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