Weds 14th August 2024
There is an epidemic of anxiety in school-aged children around the world. Nearly a third of UK school children avoid attending school because of it, and in 2023 it’s reckoned one in five had a probable mental health disorder. This is a huge increase on 20+ years ago, but whilst COVID exacerbated the problem, the root lies back around 2010.
So what happened around then to trigger this? 2010 was when two major shifts happened….smartphones became affordable to most, and social media exploded into the mainstream, including adolescents. As a result, parents started interacting less with their children, and children/adolescents spent more and more time on their phones and not playing with friends. Additionally, their roles models shifted to people who were popular online and away from those who were positive in real life. FOMO (fear of missing out) became rife.
What can we do? Reject the hook model of social media (the notifications hook you in to the gratification spiral) by using your phone as a swiss-army knife and not an entertainment centre. Use airplane mode often, or even leave it at home when socialising. What’s the worst that could happen? Above all, model good behaviour for others.
Essential reading: The Anxious Generation – Jonathan Haidt