Jonathan Haidt

So that's what kids have had for hundreds of thousands of years. It's part of being a mammal. You play, you develop skills. We began to crack down on that, to lock kids up in the 90s, to not let them out. So we're restricting what they most need, which is play, from the 90s through the 2000s. But mental health doesn't collapse then. It's actually pretty stable.

Then we get act two, which is the arrival of the phone-based childhood. And what that is, is in 2010, everybody had a flip phone. The iPhone had come out, but most teens had a flip phone, no front facing camera, no social media on the phone, no high speed data. And by 2020, 15, everyone's got all those other things.

Then we get act two, which is the arrival of the phone-based childhood. And what that is, is in 2010, everybody had a flip phone. The iPhone had come out, but most teens had a flip phone, no front facing camera, no social media on the phone, no high speed data. And by 2020, 15, everyone's got all those other things.

Now suddenly everyone has a smartphone, front facing camera, high speed internet, social media, especially Instagram on the phone. And almost like someone turned a switch in 2013, girls in America and many other countries suddenly become very anxious, depressed, and self harming.

Now suddenly everyone has a smartphone, front facing camera, high speed internet, social media, especially Instagram on the phone. And almost like someone turned a switch in 2013, girls in America and many other countries suddenly become very anxious, depressed, and self harming.

I am incredibly optimistic that we are going to roll this back. The phone-based childhood only arrived 12 years ago. We can get rid of it, and I think we're going to.

I am incredibly optimistic that we are going to roll this back. The phone-based childhood only arrived 12 years ago. We can get rid of it, and I think we're going to.

I am incredibly optimistic that we are going to roll this back. The phone-based childhood only arrived 12 years ago. We can get rid of it, and I think we're going to.

Well, the news is that there will be a children's version of The Anxious Generation. Yay! Parents kept saying, is there something I can give to my fourth grader, my fifth grader? She wants a phone. Is there something I can give her? And so we had the idea to write a version of it that would be appropriate for 9, 10, 11-year-olds. But I'm a professor.

Well, the news is that there will be a children's version of The Anxious Generation. Yay! Parents kept saying, is there something I can give to my fourth grader, my fifth grader? She wants a phone. Is there something I can give her? And so we had the idea to write a version of it that would be appropriate for 9, 10, 11-year-olds. But I'm a professor.

Well, the news is that there will be a children's version of The Anxious Generation. Yay! Parents kept saying, is there something I can give to my fourth grader, my fifth grader? She wants a phone. Is there something I can give her? And so we had the idea to write a version of it that would be appropriate for 9, 10, 11-year-olds. But I'm a professor.

I'm not good at writing for elementary school students. And so I was already working with Catherine Price, who wrote How to Break Up with Your Phone. Yes. And who is an amazing public speaker. And it just turned out Catherine volunteered for the job and she is amazing at writing for children.

I'm not good at writing for elementary school students. And so I was already working with Catherine Price, who wrote How to Break Up with Your Phone. Yes. And who is an amazing public speaker. And it just turned out Catherine volunteered for the job and she is amazing at writing for children.

I'm not good at writing for elementary school students. And so I was already working with Catherine Price, who wrote How to Break Up with Your Phone. Yes. And who is an amazing public speaker. And it just turned out Catherine volunteered for the job and she is amazing at writing for children.

Yeah, but actually, they are aware of what they're missing. Are they? Because they've seen movies from the 1970s, 80s, and 90s. They know what their parents' childhood and their grandparents' childhood was like. They're nostalgic for the childhood of the 1980s and 90s when kids did get to go out. So they know that they missed it. They've seen it in movies, and they lament it. It's painful.

Yeah, but actually, they are aware of what they're missing. Are they? Because they've seen movies from the 1970s, 80s, and 90s. They know what their parents' childhood and their grandparents' childhood was like. They're nostalgic for the childhood of the 1980s and 90s when kids did get to go out. So they know that they missed it. They've seen it in movies, and they lament it. It's painful.

Yeah, but actually, they are aware of what they're missing. Are they? Because they've seen movies from the 1970s, 80s, and 90s. They know what their parents' childhood and their grandparents' childhood was like. They're nostalgic for the childhood of the 1980s and 90s when kids did get to go out. So they know that they missed it. They've seen it in movies, and they lament it. It's painful.

No, that's right. So you know what? I'll say a word about dopamine, which is the key idea here. And then actually I'd love Catherine to explain how we're explaining. She's doing the main writing. How we're explaining these scientific concepts to kids in multiple ways. Okay. So the key thing to keep your eye on here is a neurotransmitter in the brain called dopamine.

No, that's right. So you know what? I'll say a word about dopamine, which is the key idea here. And then actually I'd love Catherine to explain how we're explaining. She's doing the main writing. How we're explaining these scientific concepts to kids in multiple ways. Okay. So the key thing to keep your eye on here is a neurotransmitter in the brain called dopamine.

No, that's right. So you know what? I'll say a word about dopamine, which is the key idea here. And then actually I'd love Catherine to explain how we're explaining. She's doing the main writing. How we're explaining these scientific concepts to kids in multiple ways. Okay. So the key thing to keep your eye on here is a neurotransmitter in the brain called dopamine.