As someone who scans a ton of headlines every morning as part of her job, I'm well placed to notice when a particular topic takes off. And I spotted a new one lately. A CDC survey showing skyrocketing levels of mental distress among teens kicked off a lively online conversation about what's behind the depressing numbers.
Some commentators blamed our viciously negative politics. Others argued that thanks to climate change, war, and late-stage capitalism, the world is genuinely pretty depressing. Another notes adults aren't doing too well either, and hazards that some kind of social contagion is in play.
All of these explanations are worth considering, but by far the most common argument for why kids started getting markedly more anxious and depressed around 2010 is as simple as it is obvious -- it's the smartphones that were introduced into wide circulation at that time, and the social media that comes with them.
The case for smartphones driving the mental health crisis
Economics blogger Noah Smith marshals a mountain of evidence to make this case on his Substack recently. Even if all the many studies he cites don't 100% convince you, it's hard to walk away from this discussion not believing that phone use is at least a significant contributor to our worsening collective mental health.
"Every causal study I can find shows a negative effect of phone-based social media on emotional well-being and/or healthy social interaction," Smith sums up, noting social-media algorithms distract us from real-life friends, nudge us toward feelings of envy and inadequacy, and turn up the volume on (engaging) but negative news.
All of which suggests it's past time we all learn to develop a healthier relationship with social media and the screens that keep us tethered to these sites. There are apps that can help you fight your addiction. Some experts advise abstinence, and studies do show that simply giving up Twitter or Facebook will make you happier.
But that raises another issue. The internet is among the greatest tools for connecting humans and information ever invented. You might want to delete your social media, but if you do, what's the best way to keep up with what's going on in the world in a way that doesn't make you depressed?
An old-school technology deserves a fresh look.
Yair Rosenberg of The Atlantic has a simple answer: How about an RSS reader? A 25-year- old technology, RSS readers are about as sexy as old gym socks, but they still perform an amazing magic trick.
"RSS provides everyday internet users with an easy way to organize all of their online-content consumption--news media, blogs, YouTube channels, even search results for favorite terms--in one place, curated by the user, not an algorithm. The answer to our relatively recent social-media woes has been sitting there all along," Rosenberg writes.
By signing up for one of the many excellent (and free) RSS readers available, you take back control of your media diet. Rather than being bombarded by your aunt's insane conspiracy theories because outrage makes Mark Zuckerberg more money, you simply add whatever media sites, social feeds, and newsletters you want on your feed, and there they are waiting for you each day.
I've been a daily RSS user for over a decade and personally find it does just what Rosenberg promises. I control what I see, which means I also have greater control over my mood and my time. (If there is no endless stream of cute animal videos, I cannot feel slightly sick when I realize I've wasted an hour watching sad chihuahuas get adopted). Yes, setting up an RSS reader takes a small initial investment of effort, but the payoff of not having to wade through algorithmically served garbage is well worth it.
If social media is really a large part of what's ailing us, the solution to a significant chunk of our mental health woes may be a tool that's been in front of our faces for more than two decades. – Inc/Tribune News Service
