In this discussion, Jonathan Haidt, a social psychologist from NYU-Stern and author of The Anxious Generation, delves into the mental health crisis affecting today's youth. He reveals how the rise of smartphones and social media has fueled anxiety and depression, particularly among teenage girls. Haidt advocates for phone-free schools to foster genuine interactions and improve learning. He also highlights the paradox of digital connectivity leading to loneliness and offers guidelines for healthy tech use to support children's mental health.
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Phone-Free Schools
Jonathan Haidt advocates for phone-free schools, comparing allowing phones in class to letting kids bring TVs and Play-Doh.
He notes that after schools go phone-free, laughter and social interaction return to hallways and lunchrooms.
insights INSIGHT
Smartphones vs. TV
Unlike previous tech panics, the rise of smartphones correlates with a sudden, international decline in teen mental health.
This makes the smartphone's impact different from previous concerns like excessive television.
insights INSIGHT
Ancient Wisdom vs. Online Life
Haidt, despite being an atheist, finds that ancient wisdom, often rooted in religion, offers valuable life lessons.
He points out that modern online life often contradicts these principles, potentially contributing to anxiety.
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In 'The Happiness Hypothesis,' Jonathan Haidt delves into the nature of happiness, fulfillment, and meaning. He discusses the division of the self into two parts: the primitive limbic system and the rational neocortex, using the metaphor of a rider and an elephant to explain the relationship between conscious and unconscious processes. Haidt examines 'Great Ideas' from ancient thinkers like Plato, Buddha, and Jesus, and evaluates them in light of contemporary psychological research. He argues that happiness is influenced by both internal and external factors, including biological set points, life conditions, and voluntary activities. The book also explores the importance of social relationships, the role of adversity in personal growth, and the concept of 'vital engagement' in work and life[2][3][5].
Deep Work
Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World
Cal Newport
In 'Deep Work', Cal Newport argues that the ability to perform deep work—professional activities in a state of distraction-free concentration—is becoming increasingly valuable in our economy. The book is divided into two parts: the first part explains why deep work is valuable, rare, and meaningful, while the second part presents four rules to transform your mind and habits to support this skill. These rules include 'Work Deeply', 'Embrace Boredom', 'Quit Social Media', and 'Drain the Shallows'. Newport provides actionable advice and examples from various successful individuals to help readers master the skill of deep work and achieve groundbreaking results.
The Anxious Generation
Jonathan Haidt
In 'The Anxious Generation', Jonathan Haidt examines the sudden decline in the mental health of adolescents starting in the early 2010s. He attributes this decline to the shift from a 'play-based childhood' to a 'phone-based childhood', highlighting mechanisms such as sleep deprivation, attention fragmentation, addiction, loneliness, social contagion, and perfectionism that interfere with children’s social and neurological development. Haidt proposes four simple rules to address this issue: no smartphones before high school, no social media before age 16, phone-free schools, and more opportunities for independence, free play, and responsibility. The book offers a clear call to action for parents, teachers, schools, tech companies, and governments to restore a more humane childhood and end the epidemic of mental illness among youth.
In The Anxious Generation, Jonathan Haidt says there is clear evidence that giving children smart phones with addictive social media has caused a mental health pandemic.
The NYU-Stern social psychologist, who also wrote The Happiness Hypothesis, spoke to us at the Annual Meeting 2025 in Davos.
Radio Davos 
