Negative impact of social media on teenage mental health and political dysfunction
Tristan Harris and Jonathan Haidt discuss the Negative impact of social media on teenage mental health and political dysfunction, proposing solutions for parents, schools, tech companies, and government to address the crisis. They suggest delaying smartphone use until high school and limiting social media use.
The book “The Anxious Generation” explores the epidemic of mental illness in teenagers caused by the great rewiring of childhood.
- The book provides concrete suggestions for parents, teachers, schools, tech companies, and government to end the crisis.
- The author, Jonathan Haidt, also studies the disastrous consequences of social media on teenage mental health and the rise of political dysfunction.
Gen Z has high rates of mental illness compared to previous generations.
- Mental health was not getting worse before 2010.
- Psychological disorders rose fast after 2010.
- Depression and anxiety are prevalent among Gen Z.
- Overprotection in the real world and underprotection online are mistakes.
The rise in depression and anxiety among young people is linked to the “great rewiring of childhood” caused by social media and smartphones.
- Adoption of social media and smartphones transformed childhood into a more solitary experience.
- Increase in emergency room visits for self-harm and suicide among young girls.
- Adoption of social media and smartphones corresponded with the decline of democracy.
The phone-based childhood has replaced the play-based childhood, leading to mental health issues in children.
- Girls are more affected by social media due to visual social comparison, perfectionism, relational aggression, and susceptibility to sociogenic transmission.
- Boys are more susceptible to behavioral addiction, porn addiction, and multiplayer video games, leading to withdrawal from effort in the real world.
- Adopting four norms can help reduce screen time for kids, including no smartphones before high school, no social media before 16, phone-free schools, and more childhood independence and free play.
The Center for Humane Technology argues that social media harms children and there is experimental evidence to support it.
Critics argue that it is just another moral panic and correlation doesn’t equal causation.
- However, evidence shows that children are not okay and there are experiments proving significant effects.
- The Center acknowledges that there is a moral panic, but argues that it is happening and they are alarm ringers, not alarmists.
- If tech companies only built products that their own children would use for eight hours a day, it could potentially clean up a lot of harm.
- We need to anticipate the consequences of AI and get better at anticipating harm
- Most social media platforms start off amazing, but are taken over by viruses, worms, parasites, and extremists.
- The digital transformation has super empowered extremists on the far left, far right, foreign intelligence agents, and trolls, leaving the rest of us confused.
Social media is an experience blocker for children, and companies operate within a space where they get to do all four market failures.
- Children don’t need digital tools for networking or getting the word out.
- Social media takes away time from sleep, hobbies, and other activities.
- Coordination problems make it difficult for parents to limit their child’s social media use.
Delaying smartphone use until high school is crucial for children’s health and well-being.
- Transition to having internet in pocket with app store and push notifications is harmful.
- Flip phone is a good alternative for communication.
- Smartwatches can be used for communication without the need for a smartphone.
- Digital divide affects adoption of smartphone norms.
- Phone-free schools are important for equity.
- AI will supercharge harms by pulling boys further into the virtual world.
The perverse incentives of AI need to be changed to prevent it from finding infinite paths to undesirable outcomes.
- Phone-free schools and raising the age of Internet adulthood to 16 can change incentives.
- Age-appropriate design codes and creating a duty of care can also help.
- Fear of missing out keeps us in collective action problems, but breaking the cycle can lead to change.
- The UK has passed laws for phone-free schools and age-appropriate design codes, showing change is possible.
The race to improve education is not about technology, but about creating an enlightened population.
- Terrible policies around recess and play were motivated by fear of falling behind educationally.
- Competition among states for creating a family-friendly environment with more outdoor play can lead to improvement.
- The decline of play-based childhood requires parents to overcome fear and let their children do things independently.
- The Let Grow Experience program can help parents overcome fear by socially validating independent activities.
The conversation on tech and kids needs to avoid being politicized.
- Tech companies may turn it into a free speech vs censorship issue to avoid success.
- Legislation is generally bipartisan, but it is becoming a left-right vs libertarian debate.
- Focusing on protecting kids can diffuse the issue and gain support.
- Anxiousgeneration.com offers resources and a movement page for parents and tech workers.
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