A review by overbookedmama
The Anxious Generation: How The Great Rewiring of Childhood is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness by Jonathan Haidt

challenging informative slow-paced

3.0

 It pains me to say that like most parenting and non-fiction books I read, this could’ve been a blog post. Jonathan Haidt explores several key ideas including the decline of play-based childhoods and the rise of phone-based childhood which disrupts social, emotional, and cognitive development in adolescents, leading to increased anxiety and depression. Some of the negative impacts of social media he calls out are comparison and perfectionism, sleep deprivation, attention deficit, and cyberbulling. Interestingly, he reprimands today’s helicopter parents and says a culture of risk aversion has made children more vulnerable. It’s more important now to foster resilience and encourage independence to give them skills to navigate challenges in life. Haidt recommends that parents reduce screen time now for younger children and delay smart phones until age 16, encourage unstructured play, model coping and problem-solving skills, and freshen up on critical media literacy skills. Most of the tips in the book were things parents hear over and over again. It’s up to us to prioritize face-to-face interactions, set clear boundaries surrounding screen use, and lead by example. I’m a proponent of having open dialogue with my children even though they’re quite young. I’m seeing their attention being impacted by their iPad use and I’m glad that their schools are phone-free. There was a good amount of fear mongering in this book but I think the author uses it to drive his point home. The Anxious Generation is rooted in opinions but does provide some data behind the author’s claims. I’m not sure how I feel about the inclusion of gender differences and the impact of social media on girls vs. boys. I think you could skip this chapter if you’re skeptical. 
Expand filter menu Content Warnings