TOtimes Books: THE ANXIOUS GENERATION by Jonathan Haidt
How the Great Rewiring of Childhood is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness
Jonathan Haidt’s new book seems to have hit a nerve. The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness by Jonathan Haidt has become an instant #1 New York Times Bestseller. This is a must-read for parents concerned about how much time their kids are spending on their cell phones. Haidt investigates youth mental health issues in the era of smartphones, social media and big tech.
If you’re a parent with kids in the 5- to 12-year-old age bracket, this is an important, but likely, an uncomfortable read. Jonathan Haidt’s “Anxious Generation” holds that too much time on social media platforms on your child’s cell phone may lead to social deprivation, sleep deprivation, addiction and ultimately the possibility of mental illness. Worse yet, he builds a credible case with exhaustive research to support his narrative.
Jonathan Haidt is a social psychologist and a professor at New York University. He’s written several books and co-authored the bestseller The Coddling of the American Mind. He writes in clear, understandable language. He calls what’s happening the “rewiring of childhood” whereby kids have moved from the playground to the Smartphone – from “play based” activity to “phone based” activity. Helicopter parenting is part of the problem. The prime culprit, according to Haidt, is the rise of social media sites like Tic Toc, Facebook, Snapchat and Instagram after 2010. Haidt goes into great detail explaining how and why social media outlets are so interested in getting kids to spend more time on their sites.
Feeling a little uncomfortable at this point? Now we’re approaching that sticky issue called, “free speech”. The author stays away from that can of worms, but does suggest things that governments, tech companies and parents can do to bring kids back to the nineties. Haidt is convincing in his “rewiring” argument and his proposed remedies. It should be noted that the province of Ontario banned cell phones in elementary school this year, and cell phones with no internet access are back on the market. So maybe he really is on to something. A recommended read for parents. 8.5 out of 10.
The Anxious Generation How the Great Rewiring of Childhood is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness by Jonathan Haidt. Copyright © 2024 by Jonathan Haidt. Published by Penguin Press an imprint of Penguin Random House LLC.
by Laurie Wallace-Lynch
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