So many of us lost heart, our voices, our strength at different points in the past year, and possibly none more than young people. “Since the start of the pandemic, mental health-related emergency department visits increased by 31% for 12-17-year-olds,” Mental Health America cites data from the Centers for Disease Control as showing. And according to YPulse, 64% of Gen Z-ers themselves say their … [Read more...] about Young artists & activists wrapping 2020 in light
Amanda Lenhart
The generation-destroying smartphone: Researchers push back
Two years ago, the headline in the Washington Post about researcher Jean Twenge's work was, "Happiness levels are rising for teens, but not for people older than 30," and she was quoted as saying, "our current culture is giving teens what they need, but not mature adults what they need." I'm confused – because the headline in the latest Atlantic Monthly about Dr. Twenge's work suggests the … [Read more...] about The generation-destroying smartphone: Researchers push back
Neutralize the ‘negativity bias’ against kids’ Net use
This post is not about technology. It's about how we (humankind) have been wiring our brains to think about technology. We have quite a hole to climb out of. Not only are our brains already "wired to scout for the bad stuff," the Huffington Post reports, referring to what neuropsychologist and author Rick Hanson calls our "negativity bias." We've been reinforcing that bias with at least 15 years … [Read more...] about Neutralize the ‘negativity bias’ against kids’ Net use
Most US teen Net users seek out privacy advice: Study
Privacy in social media is important to US teens (and undoubtedly all teens). We knew this but just got further confirmation today from the Pew Internet Project's new study, "Where Teens Seek Online Privacy Advice." "The majority of teens set their profile to either fully or partially private," the authors report, and it they can't figure out how to manage their settings themselves, they get … [Read more...] about Most US teen Net users seek out privacy advice: Study
Major update from Pew on teens’ privacy practices in social media
Contrary to how they're typically represented in the news media, "few teens embrace a fully public approach to social media," Pew Internet reports in a major new study, "Teens, Social Media and Privacy." Yes, they share more about themselves than we did as teens (publicly, anyway), but "they take an array of steps to restrict and prune their profiles." Pew turned up a lot of intelligence on … [Read more...] about Major update from Pew on teens’ privacy practices in social media