The solution is unironically just to do what China does. Create restrictions on how long kids can use the web and what they can use. It won't be perfect but it will be the biggest influence towards better habits and cultural norms.
1. No smartphones for kids before high school — give them only flip phones in middle school.
2. No social media before age 16.
3. Make schools phone-free, by putting devices in phone lockers or Yondr pouches.
4. Give kids far more free play and independence, including more and better recess.
I can't argue with any of the above.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_brain_development_timeli...
> There is no actual evidence suggesting that impulse control only finishes developing in humans in the twenties. It is a common misconception in popular psychology that the brain only fully develops by 25.[13] This may stem from a misinterpretation or oversimplification of studies which determined that development of the prefrontal cortex continues into the mid-twenties
>Human brain maturation continues to around 20[10] to 25[11] and even up to 30[12] years of age and beyond.
Saying something like "no social media until 25" would immediately have people discount Haidt's rational policy solutions as something not practically achievable, never mind probably not legal either.
https://slate.com/technology/2022/11/brain-development-25-ye...
But also, 80s/90s stranger danger and all the school shootings.
I think phones got through the "back door". When the first cell phones came around, not many kids took them to school, but the only thing they could actually use them for was contacting their friends/parents during breaks, so there was no reason to ban them. A Gameboy was specifically an entertainment device, an old cell phone was more like a flashlight or a watch, something which could presumably be used as a toy, but usually was not.
Then, cell phones got cheaper, more kids got them, but they also got more advanced. In the feature phone era, a lot of kids had phones already, but the balance of genuine communication versus amusement was still leaning towards communication. This changed very rapidly, and at a time where phones in schools were already ubiquitous, though their use in class might not have been.
The kids also used their phones constructively, for assignments, tracking school progress, Youtube how-to videos, contact with cousins, etc. They had social media accounts but they never became a focus.
At school they kept their phones on silent and in their bags.
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Fortunately three insights helped us:
1. Casual addiction is the intersection of two problems: an unhealthy addictive thing, and a lack of engaging or planned healthier alternatives.
Solve either one! But the latter problem is far tractable than the former.
2. There are only so many hours in a day, so solutions to the latter problem usually have a low complexity bound.
3. Social media isn't that rewarding for kids, once they have voluntarily invested their interest in longer term activities and challenges. Doom scrolling notably lacks any verifiable feeling of progress.
So solutions are pretty robust to ups and downs.
We kept our kids lives full of physical and real world social activities, family outings, social events at home, regularly eating times for talking and bonding, regular homework times, etc.
But if it works for you, that's great.
Many people are more mobile now.
And schools are increasingly supporting remote access and activities. It is especially fantastic for multi-home families where whatever a kids needs is often somewhere else.
> Somehow we survived.
This phrase is used a lot, but I seldom find it persuasive.
We survived without tools that didn't exist in large part because they didn't exist for other people too.
But when they arrive, and become popular, they change the balance of other things, whether any individual wants them to or not. Sometimes they are so popular and useful, they raise the baseline of what people need.
> would be solved with a little bit of advance planning instead
We needed more planning, because ...? I am lost as to your criteria here.
We solved many complex family issues with smart phones, which the kids used responsibly, largely due to lots of planning of healthy activities and quality use of time.
The kids also competently leveraged their phones for other valuable benefits, and it was especially nice for me to be able to contact them at any random point (outside of classes), without having to know where they were. They are my kids - being electronically present, via voice, text, pics, gaming apps, etc., when I was not able to be physically present, meant a great deal.
> Obviously your mind is made up
My "mind is made up" because ...? What is your basis here?
Throwing around an empty (potentially projecting) accusation, does not make it true.
For 25 years and going, we have adjusted our parenting roles by trying new things, seeing what works, seeing what stops working, and adjusting. "Making up our minds" would not be a useful means or goal.
I find it absolutely ridiculous that anybody would even suggest that kids shouldn't be allowed to have a phone at school.
Equally, I don't understand how having a phone at school is a problem during class. Of course you aren't allowed to use your phone during class unless given explicit permission. If you do it your phone gets confiscated. You get it back after class. If it happens too often your behavior grade gets marked down.
And if a kid uses a phone during a test then that's just cheating and they get an F.
The truth is Asian merit based dictatorship has transformed farm lands to economic giants within a generation, stable, peaceful society. Singapore wouldn't be where it is without government intervention. South Korea would've never been able to create Samsung without military rule. Japan certainly would not have survived a full open democracy. Taiwan wouldn't have lived to see TSMC without Chiang Kai Shek.
But China's model is not based on merit but on lineage. This is why that society will never be stable, peaceful like its neighbours. It's actually a lot worse than Western democracy and should serve as a warning to those that wish to experiment with benevolent dictatorship without merit.
2) escape countries with overt government interference wary of western liberal progressivism/multiculturalism
very little places to go in this world, pros & cons
I suspect you are referring to something else here.
Five Guys: https://www.fiveguys.com/
Five Eyes: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Five_Eyes
I dont think so, but seeing how chinese people under those circumstances view their lives and satisfaction with their social lives, etc would be one more data point in a complicated problem
Sadly contentment doesn't sound as good, but is a better measure of emotional state.
Frankly, social media should maybe be highly regulated like prescription drugs. A lot of people can't handle social media and it is tearing democracy apart.
People who have defamation or fraud judgements against them shouldn't be allowed to post on social media for 5-10 years following the judgement. Also we should place pretty severe limits on anonymity for posting on social media.