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Is Social Media a significant driver behind the mental health crisis among teenage girls (or any teenager?)
This is an older article, but something I was thinking about recently.
https://www.afterbabel.com/p/social-media-mental-illness-epidemic
This article argues that social media is a significant driver behind the mental health crisis among teenage girls.
Haidt acknowledges that social media isn't the sole factor but identifies it as the most substantial contributor to the sharp increase in teen mental illness that began around 2012 in various countries. He asserts that recent evidence increasingly supports causation, not merely correlation, despite ongoing skepticism from some journalists and researchers.
I am curious if anyone else has reviewed his research and what your thoughts are on the impacts of social media for younger people today.
Here is the Hard Fork episode of his interview as well, in case you are curious: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z-nBEX1FgBk
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1 Reply
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Social media does seem to play a big role in the mental health issues we’re seeing among teens. Haidt’s research makes a strong case for causation. This raises a deeper question: how can we balance the undeniable benefits of social media with its potential harms?
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No, it’s smartphones.
It’s conveniently ignored that at the same time, smartphones emerged in every hand.Screens, viral games/gambling, porn… These are all known to contribute to mental health challenges. I’m not saying they are a cause! I said they contribute to challenges. People don’t socialize as much, text messages don’t convey emotion.
And yes, social media plays a part too. But there is a difference between social media as it was, pre-smartphone, and as it is now. Being on a computer once in a while, to connect with friends, wasn’t harmful – it was helpful. Whereas constantly showing off how we look because cameras are in our pockets, and having strangers insult or praise us, is harmful.
Social Media is the scapegoat. Smartphones is the driver.
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Adults too but especially the young children/teens and their developing minds. I’m in my thirties and limit my time to twenty minutes per day . But parents must enforce that on their kids for sure.
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It’s not only the social media sites but so much other things they do with their smartphone.
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Research about social media and mental health shows correlation not causation. There are many factors affecting the mental health of teenagers and people all ages (climate change, wealth inequality, loss of personal rights, lack of connection to nature, on and on) yet none of them get studied as intensely as technology’s effects on mental health. That’s not to say it doesn’t have a big impact but the science is incomplete.
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