November 23, 2009—With the help of American Psychological Association (APA) members and the public education campaign (PEC) network, the 2009 Stress in America survey made headlines around the globe and — new this year — across the Twittersphere. In just the first few days following its release, the survey reached nearly 28 million people through 850 stories on TV and radio, and in newspapers, blogs and news and health Web sites.

Coverage kicked off on November 3, the morning of the survey's release, with an article in USA Today, "Kids 'absolutely' feel parents' stress, 30% worry about finances." Throughout the day and evening, local NBC affiliates around the nation aired a segment about the survey. APA Executive Director for Professional Practice Katherine C. Nordal, PhD, was quoted in both reports.

This year, the survey took a snapshot of stress in eight major cities: Atlanta, Chicago, Detroit, Denver, Los Angeles, New York, Seattle and Washington, DC, comparing the changes over the past year. Public education campaign coordinators and state psychological association directors associated with these cities fielded media calls and conducted interviews about stress in their local area. Newspaper coverage included the Denver Post, Chicago Tribune and Baltimore Sun; other media outlets that reported on the story included local TV news and news radio programs.

Social Media
For the first time, APA used social media to help get the word out about the survey. Members used LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter, among other Web sites, to share and discuss survey findings.

Those who couldn't make the survey's release event in New York City tuned in to the PEC's Twitter updates (www.twitter.com/apahelpcenter) of the presentation. As panelists shared the survey with the assembled media and offered advice on how to better manage stress, APAP staff posted brief messages on Twitter in real-time.

2009 APA Stress in America Survey coverage included:

USA Today- Kids 'absolutely' feel parents' stress, 30% worry about finances

USA Today - How stressed are kids? More than we think

Forbes.com - Most Effective Stress Relievers

Chicago Tribune - Chicagoans are stressed but learning to cope, survey suggests

Wall Street Journal (blog) - Are We Too Stressed Out to Reduce Our Stress?

Wall Street Journal (blog) - What Are Your Kids So Stressed About?

USNews.com "On Parenting" (blog) - 4 Ways to Stop Stressing Out Your Kids

Washington Post Express - Baggage Check: Annual Stress

MSNBC - "Dr. Nancy" Live (interview with APA member Karina Davidson, PhD)

New York Times-Motherlode (blog) - Helping Our Children With Stress

Denver Post - Most Denverites stressed, survey indicates

NBC's Today Show - Daily Dose with Dr. Nancy Snyderman (video)

Newsweek - Woman Vs. Cookie: Our willpower problem, and what we can do about it.

Baltimore Sun - Charm City Moms (blog) - Kids are more stressed than we think

Stress Survey Makes the News -- And the Twittersphere  (PDF, 116.06 Kb)