^Tagmental health

Child watching cellphone screen at night. Blue light from smartphone device glowing on little girl face

^{Type
post

Author
Peter Biles
Date
April 19, 2024

Categorized
Technology

Tagged
Anxiety, Cell phones, connected, crisis, Depression, Gen Z, iGen, Jonathan Haidt, loneliness, mental health, online world, social media}

Helpful Video Maps Out Gen Z Mental Health Crisis

_{The glow of the screen is swallowing a generation, and it needs to stop} _{Peter Biles

April 19, 2024

2

Technology}

Social psychologist Jonathan Haidt’s new book The Anxious Generation topped the New York Times bestsellers’ chart two weeks in a row, and has been stirring up a lot of commentary in the meantime. Haidt’s basic thesis is that we have drastically overprotected children in the real world and woefully under-protected them in the virtual world. A new video helpfully lines out this argument, and shows why today’s generation, more than the Millennials who preceded them, struggle so intensely with anxiety, depression, and loneliness. In a recent interview, author and public intellectual Andy Crouch said that while he doesn’t know if it can be backed up neurologically, there is something about the “glow” of screens that wakens something primordial in the Read More ›

Machine learning , artificial intelligence, ai, deep learning blockchain neural network concept. Brain made with shining wireframe above cpu on circuit

^{Type
post

Author
Peter Biles
Date
March 21, 2024

Categorized
Neuroscience

Tagged
Alzheimer's, censorship, data, Elon Musk, Government Policy, human computer, mental health, Neuralink, Science fiction, Twitter}

Human Subject Moves Computer Mouse with Neuralink Chip

_{So Big Tech companies might know your inner thoughts, now. What could possibly go wrong?} _{Peter Biles

March 21, 2024

3

Neuroscience}

Recent history tells us that corporations may be eager to get the upper hand and use it as an excuse to violate privacy even more than they already have. Read More ›

silhouette of woman sitting on the bed beside the windows with sunlight in the morning

^{Type
post

Author
Peter Biles
Date
March 20, 2024

Categorized
Social Factors

Tagged
David Bahnsen, gizmodo, happiness, mental health, Purpose, society, United Nations, Work}

U.S. Drops in Happiness Poll

_{A year ago the U.S. was 15th in the world. Now it's 23rd. What happened?} _{Peter Biles

March 20, 2024

2

Social Factors}

Increases in loneliness tell part of the story, also overall decline in social cohesion and for Gen Z, meteoric increases in internet and social media use. Read More ›

Psychotherapist writing notes, giving diagnosis to emotional man

^{Type
post

Author
Peter Biles
Date
March 14, 2024

Tagged
addiction, Depression, Gen Z, mental health, phones, therapy}

Too Much Focus on Mental Health?

_{Is our fixation on wellbeing making us miserable?} _{Peter Biles

March 14, 2024

4}

“We have to deal with the cancer that is mental health.” So tweeted former presidential nominee Nikki Haley back in January. Most people knew what she meant, which was that we have to take mental health seriously and do our best to foster positive mental health. From the way she phrased it, though, you’re tempted to think that “mental health” itself is, well, what she said it is: a “cancer.” The emphasis on mental health and therapy is widespread. In many ways, it is good and proper to encourage people to be more open about their mental struggles and to get help for what they’re going through. The amount of trauma, abuse, and other mental disorders that people hide is Read More ›

Mobile phone with blank screen with copy space and old books. Electronic book concept.

^{Type
post

Author
Peter Biles
Date
March 7, 2024

Categorized
Arts & Culture

Tagged
Arts and Culture, Books, Distraction, Instagram, Jean Twenge, media, mental health, Reading, reading habits, Social sciences, Substack, TikTok}

Jean Twenge: Gen Z Isn’t Reading

_{Zoomers were born into smartphones, not Shakespeare} _{Peter Biles

March 7, 2024

4

Arts & Culture}

As we are being hypnotized by fifteen-second soundbites, crafting the ability to attend to longer works of art will only become a rarer, but more valuable, skillset. Read More ›

A child using smart phone lying in bed late at night, playing games. Children's screen addiction and parent control concept. Child's room at night. Sensitive content on screen

^{Type
post

Author
News
Date
January 3, 2024

Categorized
Social Media

Tagged
addiction, Andrew McDiarmid, Facebook, Instagram, mental health, social media, teenagers}

Andrew McDiarmid on Teens and Smartphones

_{We can mitigate the mental health crisis, but we have to act now.} _{News

January 3, 2024

3

Social Media}

Noted social psychologist Jonathan Haidt notes that the mental health epidemic among teenagers, particular teen girls, really began around 2012 or so. Read More ›

Teenage boy in a bedroom listening to music through his smartphone

^{Type
post

Author
Peter Biles
Date
December 13, 2023

Categorized
Technology

Tagged
digital tech, drugs, Jonathan Haidt, mental health, screentime, Smartphones, social media, teenagers}

New Report: Parents, Don’t Give Your Kids Smartphones

_{This has become a national health crisis.} _{Peter Biles

December 13, 2023

3

Technology}

Haidt writes in The Atlantic that smartphones ought to be banned from schools because "they impede learning, stunt relationships, and lessen belonging." Read More ›

young unhappy woman suffering from depression, and stress

^{Type
post

Author
Peter Biles
Date
October 24, 2023

Categorized
Addiction, Social Media

Tagged
addiction, Instagram, Jean Twenge, Jonathan Haidt, mental health, Technology}

Is This a Moral Reckoning? 41 States Sue Meta for Knowingly Addicting Young Users

_{The lawsuit claims that Meta's platforms are harming its young users. The data backs it up.} _{Peter Biles

October 24, 2023

3

Addiction, Social Media}

The lawsuit coincides with a new article from Jean Twenge, known for researching "Gen-Z" and their painful relationship with addictive digital media. Read More ›

Hands of a male photographer holding a digital camera taking pictures of a idyllic landscape with a lake and mountains while the picture shows at the display

^{Type
post

Author
Peter Biles
Date
October 16, 2023

Tagged
Arts and Culture, Family, First Things, Gen Z, Jonathan Haidt, mental health, social media, tech use, Technology, Toddlers}

Two Notable Reads: Children and Tech and the Illusions of Photography

_{How much should kids be online? And is taking pictures taking us out of real life?} _{Peter Biles

October 16, 2023

4}

Teenagers' mental health has been on the decline over the last decade, particularly among teen girls. Idealized images can be fodder for the social comparison game. Read More ›

Young Asian man sitting on stairs outside reading a book

^{Type
post

Author
Peter Biles
Date
October 2, 2023

Categorized
Arts & Culture

Tagged
addiction, Books, Digital Addiction, fiction, instant gratification, men in america, mental health, Psychology Today, Reading, Story}

Why You Should Read More Fiction

_{The mental benefits for reading good stories are many.} _{Peter Biles

October 2, 2023

3

Arts & Culture}

When looking for “solutions” to today’s mental health crisis in the United States, particularly among the millions of men who are checking out of society, reading fiction may not immediately come to mind. However, a new article from Psychology Today argues that reading fiction is “essential” for today’s men. The author of the article, psychologist Jett Stone, focuses on men in part because today’s literary market is largely geared towards women, and fiction and femininity are often closely associated. Nonetheless, he believes that reading fiction can benefit both women and men. He writes, Recent research indicates that reading fiction fosters critical thinking by presenting ideas subtly and in more roundabout ways than nonfiction. One study of adolescents found that frequent fiction readers possessed more Read More ›

Sad man getting dislikes and being rejected by audience for social addiction ad

^{Type
post

Author
News
Date
August 13, 2023

Categorized
Social Media

Tagged
Andrew McDiarmid, Anxiety and depression, Cal Newport, emotions, mental health, New York Post, Reality, social media, Twitter}

The Benefits of Ditching Social Media

_{Tech writer Cal Newport explains why boredom is actually a good thing} _{News

August 13, 2023

2

Social Media}

Cal Newport ascended into the limelight upon his viral Ted Talk in which he called people to ditch social media. In this video from last year, Newport rehashes some of the main benefits of not having social media. Boredom is on the list, interestingly; Newport notes that most people no longer have moments of boredom, and as a consequence, don’t have any space in their lives to reflect, think, and work through their emotions. Andrew McDiarmid, a contributor at Mind Matters, has written on this in the past. He notes, Mind wandering, or stream of consciousness thought, gives us several mental gains, including the ability to consider obstacles to future goals, generate novel, creative thoughts, and place our experiences in meaningful Read More ›

Beauty injection concept. Syringe with violet liquid for hypodermic injection.

^{Type
post

Author
Wesley J. Smith
Date
June 12, 2023

Categorized
Medicine and Health

Tagged
Assisted Suicide, bioethics, Culture War, Depression, Euthanasia, Legislation, mental health, Politics, Portugal, suicide, Wesley J. Smith, Western Culture}

This Country Just Legalized Euthanasia

_{The law isn't even limited to those who are terminally ill} _{Wesley J. Smith

June 12, 2023

2

Medicine and Health}

Alas. The president of Portugal just signed into law a bill legalizing euthanasia by lethal injection. It is not limited to the terminally ill — which is at least honest, since that is not what euthanasia/assisted suicide is really all about. From the Reuters story: The law specifies that people would be allowed to request assistance in dying in cases when they are “in a situation of intense suffering, with definitive injury of extreme gravity or serious and incurable disease.” It establishes a two-month gap between accepting a request and the actual procedure and makes psychological support mandatory. Strict guidelines and all that jazz. Not only are they unlikely to be strictly enforced but will soon be redefined from protections to barriers, Read More ›

Closed up image of a Female using TikTok application on a smartphone in home. 5 September, 2022. ChiangMai, Thailand.

^{Type
post

Author
News
Date
June 7, 2023

Categorized
Social Media, Surveillance

Tagged
addiction, ByteDance, China, Cognition, Congress, Forbes, government, mental health, National Security, social media, TikTok}

TikTok is Storing Data in China, Contrary to Former Claims

_{TikTok CEO said user data isn't stored in China. Turns out it is.} _{News

June 7, 2023

2

Social Media, Surveillance}

Many online creators and entrepreneurs give sensitive data to TikTok, the China-owned social media app, so they can do business on the platform. That includes social security numbers. TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew told Congress earlier this year that users’ data was stored outside of China in places such as Virginia and Singapore. Apparently, however, that is an inaccurate claim. According to a report from Forbes, TikTok has indeed been storing sensitive data on Chinese servers, where employees there can access it. Alexandra S. Levine reports, A trove of records obtained by Forbes from multiple sources across different parts of the company reveals that highly sensitive financial and personal information about those prized users and third parties has been stored in China. Read More ›

Finger touching phone with social media concept and dark background

^{Type
post

Author
News
Date
May 24, 2023

Categorized
Social Media

Tagged
Big Tech, Instagram, Jonathan Haidt, mental health, social media, Surgeon General, Technology, Teen mental health, Vivek Murthy, youth}

Social Media is Hurting Kids. Does Big Tech Care?

_{Body image issues, low self-esteem, and social comparison are all typical outcomes of excessive social media use among teens and children} _{News

May 24, 2023

2

Social Media}

Surgeon General Vivek Murthy issued a warning in a briefing this week on the negative impact of social media on kids, particularly teenage girls. Murthy called tech companies to provide “safeguards” to protect children who are at a critical stage in brain development. Early exposure to social media, numerous studies show, are correlated with anxiety and depression in young people. Murthy said, “We are in the middle of a national youth mental health crisis, and I am concerned that social media is an important driver of that crisis – one that we must urgently address.” Social media could harm youth mental health, U.S. Surgeon General warns | Reuters Problems like body image issues, low self-esteem, and social comparison are all Read More ›

^{Type
post

Author
News
Date
May 23, 2023

Categorized
Social Media

Tagged
addiction, China, Instagram, Jonathan Haidt, mental health, social media, TikTok, Wall Street Journal}

TikToxic: The Popular App is Feeding Teens a “Diet of Darkness”

_{Apart from the debate over espionage and data privacy, TikTok is a highly addictive app} _{News

May 23, 2023

2

Social Media}

TikTok has gained a fair bit of fierce criticism over the last few months; the China-owned social media app is the most popular on the market, with tens of millions of users and downloads. That includes, of course, teenagers. Apart from the debate over espionage and data privacy, TikTok is a highly addictive app. We covered more on that here, but recent studies show that it’s not just the amount of time spent on the app that is troubling, but the specific kinds of content young people are ingesting every day. Julie Jargon writes in the Wall Street Journal, Data privacy, though, might be less worrisome than the power of TikTok’s algorithm. Especially if you’re a parent. A recent study found that Read More ›

Diverse culture in society and social justice together as a crowd of diverse people representing community and black history or cultural celebration of diversity

^{Type
post

Author
News
Date
May 22, 2023

Categorized
Relationships

Tagged
Anxiety, community, Depression (mental health), mental health, mind-body dualism, Psyche, Technology}

Dealing with Social Anxiety: Set Some Goals

_{Without an overarching goal, we can't effectively practice the practical steps that can get us over social anxiety} _{News

May 22, 2023

2

Relationships}

It’s no secret that rates of anxiety and depression have risen drastically in the modern American context. A cacophony of factors is to blame–everything from the decline of faith, loss of community, and digital media addiction. And for many, even when the possibility of social interaction arrives, the anxiety kicks in and leaves them feeling immobile and paralyzed. So, what can we do to practice confidence and ease in public situations? A new article at Psyche goes into depth on practical steps people can take to overcome social anxiety. The first recommendation is goal-setting. What’s your vision? What are the goalposts you’re shooting for in life? Fallon Goodman writes, Without an overarching goal, we can’t effectively practice the steps that Read More ›

^{Type
post

Author
News
Date
May 8, 2023

Categorized
Media

Tagged
children, media, mental health, social media, Technology, The Conversation, violence}

When Disaster Strikes Through the TV

_{News cycles that profit off constant, sensationalized negativity aren't helping} _{News

May 8, 2023

2

Media}

A hundred years ago it would have been unimaginable to watch a tragedy unfold on the other side of the world. Such news might get peddled via newspaper, or later through radio, but the access we now enjoy to the rest of the world is unprecedented. How is that affecting us? According to this study, covered in an article from The Conversation, televised disaster and tragedy can severely affect the mental health of children to varying degrees. The authors write, Our latest research uses brain scans to show how simply watching news coverage of disasters can raise children’s anxiety and trigger responses in their brains that put them at risk of post-traumatic stress symptoms. It also explores why some children are more Read More ›

Cellphone, mental health and woman in her bed with depression while watching videos on social media. Tired, sleepy and depressed female with insomnia networking on a phone in her bedroom at home.

^{Type
podcast

Author
Robert J. Marks
Date
April 20, 2023

Tagged
Big Tech, Dawn Wible, mental health, Robert J. Marks, Talk More Tech Less, Technology}

Working Towards Digital Flourishing

_{Robert J. Marks

April 20, 2023

1}

Dawn Wible, the founder of Talk More Tech Less, continues her conversation with Robert J. Marks on digital tech. How can we healthily use technology instead of being manipulated by Big Tech? In this episode, she lays out practical steps people can take to reclaim their time, relationships, and mental health. Additional Resources