The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness

by Jonathan Haidt

As they begin puberty, they are often socially insecure, easily swayed by peer pressure, and easily lured by any activity that seems to offer social validation.

They learn how to manage relationships, and how to manage themselves and their emotions in order to keep those precious relationships going.

People don’t get depressed when they face threats collectively; they get depressed when they feel isolated, lonely, or useless.

Social media is not synonymous with the internet, smartphones are not equivalent to desktop computers or laptops, PacMan is not World of Warcraft, and the 2006 version of Facebook is not the 2024 version of TikTok.

There is evidence that the fragmentation of attention in early adolescence caused by problematic use of social media and video games may interfere with the development of executive function.

She learned, from other underage Instagram users, how to hide the app on her home screen under a calculator icon, so she no longer had to delete it.