The great rewiring: is social media really behind an epidemic of teenage mental illness?
www.nature.com
The evidence is equivocal on whether screen time is to blame for rising levels of teen depression and anxiety — and rising hysteria could distract us from tackling the real causes.
  • Lad@reddthat.comEnglish
    2·
    6 months ago

    I daresay if young people could afford a home, a car, a family, and had some disposable income, free time, and any fucking prospect of a satisfactory life then they’d be a lot less depressed.

    I don’t think social media is particularly good but it’s far from the worst problem facing young people today. The “phone bad” crap is just a lazy cop out.

  • UndulyUnruly@lemmy.worldEnglish
    1·
    6 months ago

    TLDR, less nuanced:

    Several meta-analyses and systematic reviews converge on the same message. An analysis done in 72 countries shows no consistent or measurable associations between well-being and the roll-out of social media globally. Moreover, findings from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development study, the largest long-term study of adolescent brain development in the United States, has found no evidence of drastic changes associated with digital-technology use. Haidt, a social psychologist at New York University, is a gifted storyteller, but his tale is currently one searching for evidence.

    • slampisko@lemmy.worldEnglish
      0·
      6 months ago

      Blaming teenage mental illness on social media feels to me like the boomers are trying to find a different scapegoat than all the factors caused by their own stupidity, greed and destruction of human habitat.

  • systemglitch@lemmy.worldEnglish
    1·
    6 months ago

    Not going out and interacting as freely with people paying direct attention to one another leads to heightened mental issues? Shocking.

    I grew up in the 80’s and we were super fucking social. Anyone that didnt live it cannot grasp how far we have fallen from what we once had, and we had no idea how good we had it.

    Not to mention everything is being recorded to haunt every kid there is.

    I feel read bad for modern day kids, my daughter included. An important aspect of humanity has been lost.

    • locuester@lemmy.zipEnglish
      1·
      6 months ago

      Exactly. Sure, we can say it’s not directly related to tech devices, but it’s definitely related to not wandering and having real human connection constantly.

      And with the recording of everything - absolutely changes behavior.

      • sep@lemmy.worldEnglish
        1·
        6 months ago

        There is a wast difference between the internet. That gives you access to information. And social media with algoriths fine tuned to keep you there as long as possible.
        Cameras everywhere is for sure a disaster for anyones sanity and development.

        • locuester@lemmy.zipEnglish
          1·
          6 months ago

          100%. I read my phone a lot. Typically Lemmy and Wall St Journal. If I didn’t have this device I’d be reading paper magazines and newspapers just like I did pre-device / internet.

          It’s not the device, it’s how it’s being used that’s harmful. But I think we all agree with that