I just finished The Anxious Generation, which FYI is available free on Spotify premium. He loses me a bit when he gets into all the specific data, but he has a clear goal to make change in schools now so I get it. I think by doing that though he underestimates the resonance that his message has for those of us around 40 who experienced things like AOL Instant Messenger's influence in our formative years.
If you haven't read it, I followed that up with Johann Hari’s "Stolen Focus” which I'm halfway through now. It's a nice segue from the phone/media addiction in Haidt's book to an attempt to reclaim our focus and break those habits.
I'm 3/4 of the way through the book right now (I also keep forgetting I can get tons of awesome books on Spotify Premium). The data was a little tedious, but he had to put it in there because so many people try and discount his work, which is weird because all his points are totally obvious to anyone observing the current world. AIM was a crazy addictive first internet drug, I remember almost fist fighting my sister on multiple occasions to get on it. I'll have to read that other book, I've heard of it but haven't read it. I'm not gonna lie, I have some serious addiction issues when it comes to social media, it's a constant battle to curb it. I know how bad it is for me, someone who would probably be diagnosed with adult ADHD, which is why I refuse to let my kids use screens, outside of TV for a few hours a week. And the way their moods change after watching TV for an hour, I just know it would be a disaster if tablets or video games came into the picture.
I'm right there with you on social media addictions, especially when it can also tie into your job and you can find ways to justify it. I actually put time limits on a few apps after reading TAG and it's been pretty helpful to re-prioritize things like reading and meditation. Stolen Focus starts with the premise of him trying to go cold turkey on social media and realizing it's not enough to just remove the negatives, you have to replace them with positive things. That's as far as I've gotten anyway haha.
I forgot that drug trial...that's a great memory!
I just finished The Anxious Generation, which FYI is available free on Spotify premium. He loses me a bit when he gets into all the specific data, but he has a clear goal to make change in schools now so I get it. I think by doing that though he underestimates the resonance that his message has for those of us around 40 who experienced things like AOL Instant Messenger's influence in our formative years.
If you haven't read it, I followed that up with Johann Hari’s "Stolen Focus” which I'm halfway through now. It's a nice segue from the phone/media addiction in Haidt's book to an attempt to reclaim our focus and break those habits.
I'm 3/4 of the way through the book right now (I also keep forgetting I can get tons of awesome books on Spotify Premium). The data was a little tedious, but he had to put it in there because so many people try and discount his work, which is weird because all his points are totally obvious to anyone observing the current world. AIM was a crazy addictive first internet drug, I remember almost fist fighting my sister on multiple occasions to get on it. I'll have to read that other book, I've heard of it but haven't read it. I'm not gonna lie, I have some serious addiction issues when it comes to social media, it's a constant battle to curb it. I know how bad it is for me, someone who would probably be diagnosed with adult ADHD, which is why I refuse to let my kids use screens, outside of TV for a few hours a week. And the way their moods change after watching TV for an hour, I just know it would be a disaster if tablets or video games came into the picture.
I'm right there with you on social media addictions, especially when it can also tie into your job and you can find ways to justify it. I actually put time limits on a few apps after reading TAG and it's been pretty helpful to re-prioritize things like reading and meditation. Stolen Focus starts with the premise of him trying to go cold turkey on social media and realizing it's not enough to just remove the negatives, you have to replace them with positive things. That's as far as I've gotten anyway haha.