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cover of episode 556. How Social Media Is Wrecking Kids' Lives and Stealing Their Childhood | Jonathan Haidt

556. How Social Media Is Wrecking Kids' Lives and Stealing Their Childhood | Jonathan Haidt

2025/6/19
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The Jordan B. Peterson Podcast
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Jonathan Haidt: 我认为智能手机和社交媒体的普及标志着传统童年的终结。这些技术通过强化机制优化了对注意力的控制，对儿童造成了负面影响。孩子们花费大量时间在屏幕上，减少了现实世界的互动和游戏时间，导致焦虑、抑郁等心理健康问题。我认为社交媒体不适合儿童，现实世界过度监管而网络世界则完全缺乏监管。如果我们的思想像一个大型语言模型，那么输入的内容至关重要，高质量的内容与低俗内容会产生截然不同的社会影响。 Jordan Peterson: 我认为Jonathan Haidt 的新书《焦虑的一代》关注的是机器对儿童注意力的掠夺，以及对儿童发展（尤其是游戏方面）的干扰。年轻女性（也包括年轻男性）中，抑郁和焦虑显著上升，这与士气低落有关，我们需要讨论对此采取实际行动。过去十年间，尤其是 2014 年左右，人们的负面情绪有所上升，而正面情绪有所下降。我认为自残行为是衡量负面情绪倾向的更直接的行为指标。焦虑是对心理或生理毁灭的威胁的反应，抑郁是一种痛苦反应，它有两个方面：负面情绪的加剧和积极情绪的减少。

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This chapter explores the sharp rise in anxiety and depression among young people, particularly girls, since around 2012. The data reveals a significant increase in internalizing disorders, self-harm, and other mental health issues across several Western countries. The correlation with the rise of smartphones and social media is explored, though causality isn't definitively proven.
  • Sharp rise in anxiety and depression among young people since 2012
  • Increase in self-harm, especially among girls
  • Correlation with rise of smartphones and social media
  • Cross-cultural observation of similar trends in Western countries

Shownotes Transcript

In this urgent conversation, Jonathan Haidt and Jordan Peterson dissect the silent catastrophe facing Gen Z—spiraling anxiety, attention collapse, and social isolation—all amplified by addictive tech. They explore the psychological and spiritual fallout of algorithm-optimized platforms, the gendered impact on boys and girls, and what it means to raise children in a virtualized world. Data-driven but deeply human, this is essential viewing for anyone wondering what the hell happened after 2012—and how to fix it.

 

This episode was filmed on June 9th, 2025

 

 

| Links |

 

For Jonathan Haidt:

 

On X https://x.com/jonhaidt?lang=en

 

On Substack https://substack.com/@jonathanhaidt

 

On YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@JonathanHaidt1/videos

 

Website https://jonathanhaidt.com/

 

Read “The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness” https://a.co/d/04yfM36