The Anxious Generation Resources
One in five children and young people in England aged eight to 25 had a probable mental health disorder in 2023. Since 2017 alone this has risen from around 12% to just above 20%. More and more children and young people are struggling with mental health and mental health associated difficulties like sleep, loneliness and worry.
Jonathan Haidt suggested that this increase coincides with the increased use of social media and technological devices. He argues that children are “antifragile”: like saplings that need to be buffeted by winds in order to grow properly, they need to experience setbacks to develop resilience. Furthermore he suggests that the move away from a play based childhood contributes to this setback in the development of resilience.
Haidt promotes 4 separate solutions that include: No smartphones before school, No social media until 16, Phone free schools, and increased independence and free play for children.
The book was an excellent read and rings increasingly true. The good news is we are already seeing parents and schools starting to take some of these steps.
Find more information on the website or better yet read the book.
https://www.anxiousgeneration.com/book
For those interested please follow the link below for free resources:
Also please find some of the statistical data relating to the increased prevalence's in Mental Health here. https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/mental-health-of-children-and-young-people-in-england/2023-wave-4-follow-up
