Psychologist and Harvard lecturer Susan Linn discusses how digital culture influences kids towards consumerism and brand loyalty. She explains how games and devices can hinder learning and parent-child relationships. The episode emphasizes choosing beneficial toys and programs, combatting commercialized culture, and advocating for critical thinking to counter corporate influence on children.

Janet's guest is psychologist, writer, researcher, and Harvard lecturer Susan Linn. For decades, Susan has been a passionate advocate for our children and a steadfast fighter against the infiltration of Big Business and Big Tech into kids' lives (and parents' pocketbooks). In an eye-opening discussion, Susan describes how digital culture is designed to indoctrinate children into consumerism and brand loyalty, and how it's geared to create dependencies on games and devices for stimulation and soothing. She explains how games and devices teach values that are often diametrically opposed to our own, how they can affect learning by shrinking our children’s world and even interfere with parent-child relationships. Ultimately, Susan and Janet focus on the positive actions we can take to lessen the impact of manipulative marketers while realistically acknowledging the role of digitized culture in all of our lives.More to learn in this episode:How to choose the most beneficial toys and programs for our kidsHow advertisers capture children's attention and encourage them to nag us for more, more, moreWhy combatting commercialized culture isn't only a family issue, but a societal oneWhat Alexa offers to "bored" childrenComputer games are less "active" for kids than we might believeFor more on Susan, her work, and her books, visit: www.https://www.consumingkids.com/Janet's "No Bad Kids Master Course" is available at NoBadKidsCourse.com and JanetLansbury.com.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We interview Susan Linn about her new book, Who's Raising the Kids: Big Tech, Big Business, and the Lives of Children. We discuss the negative effects of commercialization in childhood, the pressure for young people to achieve success at a young age, and the harmful impact of marketing on children's well-being and values. We also explore the influence of smartphones on parenting and childhood, the importance of communication in solving the climate crisis, and reflect on the need to prioritize children's well-being.