Haidt’s book has been criticized by scholars, and rightly so. The expert draws heavily on research showing young people’s mental health has worsened since 2010. This roughly coincides with the mass adoption of smartphones. However, correlation is not causation. Our research to date shows that the impact of phones and social media on adolescents’ mental health is subtle.
Meta-analyses on the links between mental health and social networks show inconclusive or relatively small results. The largest American study to date on brain development in children found no significant link between improved brain function and digital media use.
The American Psychological Association also recently reported that social media does not harm or benefit young people, and that the consequences of using them depend on people’s strengths or weaknesses and the circumstances in which they grow up.
So why do Haidt and other experts insist that smartphones are dangerous for the brain? This is because the research results are not understood. So even the simple connection between social media use and brain functions is perceived as a sign of something harmful in itself. However, functional and structural studies of the brain do not allow objective determination of the increase or decrease in neural activity or the thickness of the brain area as a “good” or “bad” thing.
News materials cannot be equated with a doctor’s prescription. Consult an expert before making a decision.
Source: Ferra
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