Smart Phones as a Mental Health Crisis

[DCCougar]

Originally Posted by jpd

....It's all bad for any mind. ...over stimulation of the developing brain...a.k.a mind control....

You don't think you're overstating it just a little?

[Otterhound]

I believe that assembling groups of individuals and removing the smartphones while providing all necessary items for conducting their normal daily life would yield some very interesting results .

[Glennwillow]

I see some of this behavior and resulting effects from smart phones in my grand children. My 15-year-old grand daughter has had a smart phone for a while and she is into Snapchat. My just turned 13 year-old grand son just got a smart phone.

I'm not sure how much a person can do to fight the problems of a generation, but recognizing the symptoms of problems is helpful so a person can take action before real trouble occurs. And then try to channel young people into doing something else with their time besides lying on their beds and staring at their phones.

Then again, I have a 44-year-old son-in-law that does nothing but lay on the couch and stare at his phone when he comes to visit us with our daughter. I don't know if this is any different than my older brother who goes to visit people and then sits and reads the paper.

There will always be people who are socially inept. Some of those people get depressed.

- Glenn

[KevWind]

Originally Posted by Davis Webb

The counter points here are weak and more anecdotal than the original article!

There is a slew of neurophysiological evidence that there are hard wired brain changes with digital technology. Under the age of 5 the effects are the most dramatic, causing developmental delays. After that, in the maturing brain, up to the age of 25, there are tons of studies on digital tech induced changes.

I would say that clinging to the notion that smartphones are just like television was, misses the entire point. The dismissive "nothing to see here folks" is precisely was tech marketers want you to believe as they load your phone with ads, games, promotions mail lists, insider scoops, social media and worse.

I never said cell phones were just like TV..
I never said there is nothing to see ...

Do I think that kids usage of cell phones is troubling and possibly out of control ? Yes.
Do I think it is the the fault of the technology ? .. No, that is ridiculous ... It is the parents fault .
Do I think headlines or statements like '"Smartphones are destroying an entire generation " is fear mongering? Yes.
Do I understand the power and sales potential of fear mongering ? YES....

[robj144]

Originally Posted by KevWind

I never said cell phones were just like TV..
I never said there is nothing to see ...
Do I think that kids usage of cell phones is troubling and possibly out of control ? Yes.
Do I think it is the the fault of the technology ? .. No, that is ridiculous It is the parents fault .
Do I think headlines or statements like '"Smartphones are destroying an entire generation " is fear mongering? Yes.
Do I understand the power and sales potential of fear mongering ? YES....

Well said.

[Otterhound]

Sadly , this type of discussion typically evolves away from the real point .
The smartphone doesn't care about your age , job status , gender , color or any other human circumstance . It is blind and without prejudice just like any other piece of machinery .
The issues with tech , as it is called , are spread across the entire human race .
It is evolving faster than we could ever as humans and we would be well served to get a handle on it before we no longer can .
This transcends regulations and rules . It goes directly to the basic human condition .
5 , 15 , 25 , 65, 85 , tech does not discriminate .
Better get you act together folks sooner than later .

[Denny B]

I'm not by any means a Luddite, and I certainly wouldn't want to do without the use of my cell phone in emergencies...

But like a few others, I don't need to read research papers to explain what I deal with in the real world every day...

My car was hit and totaled a couple of years ago by a young girl using her cell when she cut across 2 lanes of traffic in front of me, never looking up before the impact...I've been forced off the road on my motorcycle at least a dozen times for the same reason...

I have to stiff arm people about to walk directly into me in public on a regular basis, and I've given up counting the times I've seen people do the "Zombie Walk" into doors, walls, columns and walk directly in front of traffic on the street...this behavior is epidemic, addictive, and dangerously REAL..

I have an open mind, but please don't quote me stats and research "experts" to tell me I can't believe my lyin' eyes...

[jpd]

Originally Posted by DCCougar

You don't think you're overstating it just a little?

Not at all. YMMV

[Silurian]

Originally Posted by Otterhound

Sadly , this type of discussion typically evolves away from the real point .
The smartphone doesn't care about your age , job status , gender , color or any other human circumstance . It is blind and without prejudice just like any other piece of machinery .
The issues with tech , as it is called , are spread across the entire human race .
It is evolving faster than we could ever as humans and we would be well served to get a handle on it before we no longer can .
This transcends regulations and rules . It goes directly to the basic human condition .
5 , 15 , 25 , 65, 85 , tech does not discriminate .
Better get you act together folks sooner than later .

Very similar fears were expressed during the early decades of the Industrial Revolution. In fact Romanticism was in part a rejection of industrialisation and it's perceived negative effects on the 'human condition'

That is not to imply that such fears were entirely unfounded, but the apocalypse was avoided. It seems likely that we are in/entering a similar period of rapid change. Personally, I'm an optimist I believe we have an unparalleled capacity to adapt to change, whether that be environmental, social, political, economic or technological. If we're heading for disaster I don't believe that 'tech' will be the reason. More likely what we are doing to the planet as a whole.

[Kerbie]

OK, guys... last warning. Keep this thread on target and please refrain from personal attacks.

[RP]

First of all, thanks to Davis for providing a stimulus to make us think. It's hard for most of us Baby Boomers to really empathize with a younger generation that has been so shaped by the ever presence of certain technologies. One thing that I notice in listening to younger folks talk (not cyber "talk" but actual speech) is the frequent use of the word "like." While I'd taken this as merely a verbal mannerism, I've got to wonder after reading this article if it isn't more than that. In other words, because the iPhone Generation has limited itself from real social interactions and firsthand experiences, they can only relate to things that are "like" firsthand interactions. Just a thought...

“I’ve been on my phone more than I’ve been with actual people,” she said. “My bed has, like, an imprint of my body.”

“I was trying to talk to her about my family, and what was going on, and she was like, ‘Uh-huh, yeah, whatever.’

At one time, like seemed to have special proprietary usage by teens. However, use of like now extends to all ages and genders. Please allow me to demonstrate… “So, I was like at this film screening, like the other night, and like the moderator used the word “like” like so many times that it was like so distracting.” This is, in fact, what happened. On a recent evening, while attending a film screening, the very knowledgeable and insightful moderator, was afflicted with a case of the likes. It was at that point that I realized that the idiomatic use of the word “like” had reached epidemic proportions.

A number of audience members and I were so distracted by his excessive use of like that we were unable to focus on his insights and analysis of the movie. He came across sounding very immature, uneducated, and unsure of himself. To spice things up a bit, he tossed “you know” and “really” into the mixture. These alternative fillers did not help at all.

The other thing that I wonder about is the "fish bowl" existence that the author has described. By limiting their experiences and firsthand experiences to such a large degree, have the young people described not made their locus of control so thoroughly dependent on the opinions of others that their mental states are controlled by the often few opinions of others? As an example, if my entire mental state was dependent on the feedback that I received from comments from less well meaning other members of AGF, I too might be a basket case (even more than I am). But I have had an entire lifetime of 68 years to shape a self-image and have all kinds of daily opportunities to do things that continue to shape my self-image which translates into mental health. However, the young people in question have no other experience than the fishbowl life largely based on their iPhone experiences in which to shape their self-image and mental health. The smallest things can be dropped into that fish bowl and have the power to radically change the chemistry of the aqueous environment surrounding its inhabitants. Very frightening.....

[JamminPA]

The evolution of the human consciousness is simultaneously the evolution of media/communication technologies. From long ago starting with banging on a drum and using primal speech, to the printing press- radio- television- internet, there are specific modes of consciousness facilitated by each of these technologies.

The journey of finding meaning and purpose in life, while making in-person personal connections with others, has been overtaken by technology that helps us progress as a society, but at the cost of losing the ability to create deep meaningful connections to those around us.

[Otterhound]

Originally Posted by JamminPA

The evolution of the human consciousness is simultaneously the evolution of media/communication technologies. From long ago starting with banging on a drum and using primal speech, to the printing press- radio- television- internet, there are specific modes of consciousness facilitated by each of these technologies.

The journey of finding meaning and purpose in life, while making in-person personal connections with others, has been overtaken by technology that helps us progress as a society, but at the cost of losing the ability to create deep meaningful connections to those around us.

First of all , welcome .
Am I correct in thinking that you agree that a loss in the ability to make personal connections with other humans is an acceptable loss for the " progress " of human society ?
If so , what is that progress ?

[rokdog49]

Originally Posted by Otterhound

First of all , welcome .
Am I correct in thinking that you agree that a loss in the ability to make personal connections with other humans is an acceptable loss for the " progress " of human society ?
If so , what is that progress ?

I don't believe he was saying it was acceptable, just stating the facts as they are. People are now, more than ever, being connected by technology more than human contact. We are being de-humanized by technology and it's happening quickly.

[leew3]

Similarly fears were expressed about the dangers of locomotive travel. There were significant concerns that at above 15 mph the human brain would sustain neurological damage from input overload.

Tragically related to this thread is the emergence of an increase in pedestrian/vehicle accidents that are in some measure attributed to the pedestrians looking at their phones when crossing the street. In my college town we're always on the lookout for 'phone zombies'!