What offers the most resistance and refuses to be named when you do prevention work with these young people and their screens?
I would say that the greatest resistance my work faces is the marriage, and its consequences, between a deeply seeded urgent need for instant gratification and that special "you can't tell me anything" attitude most of us have in the blossoming stages of puberty. I think the newer generations have a very low tolerance for boredom, and this is not to say I think the kids aren't alright: I genuinely believe that the effects of a fast-paced capitalism has un/consciously taught them that "boredom" is bad, negative and the result of one wasting their lent lifetime here in this planet. Boredom doesn't feed the void: it is a pause, a microscope upon that inner chasm that cannot be definitely filled. This notion terrifies me, as an adult!
Another angle is that the kids I interface with are generally from Europe/growing up in Europe. The culture here can be very consumer oriented and there are many influences that drive us to a fleeting happiness contingent upon material goods. Desire rides above all else and is one of the most pressing hungers. But as we come to learn (and relearn, and relearn), desire can lead to all sorts of unhappiness. I think that the classes I teach are aware of this on some level, but there is an illusion that going after the desire, giving in to the cycle of unconscious up and down, is easier than facing self and going with the proverbial flow.
The last challenge is that social media plays often on themes of meritocracy and the urgency of finding a purpose (or power) within a capitalist system. It is rare that I hear a student say, in paraphrased terms, that they want to follow their heart. I don't think they are at fault: it is the world they are born into and that world, and its images and messages, shapes us all. It's hard to get to a point where I can say, without being too cheesy, that they can do anything they want. Most of them seemingly don't believe me when I say that. But I will keep trying to break through that illusion.
What do young people say they are looking for when they open a social network? And what do you think they are really looking for?
It may be a sillily cheesy answer, but it's most likely the most honest: connection. Connection to the outer, the other, the inner, self. What drew me in back then was the FOMO element (it kept me online, too) and this drive to belong, to be a part of a digital conglomeration of others sharing their experiences in near real time. At first it's exciting to see what can be seen, what the minds of my generation had to offer. This superficial fascination wore away and I was left with, basically, a habit of going online. I think this is probably still essentially the same, just at a faster and more saturated pace.
I see an isolation in some of the faces I speak to. It is an isolation that has always been with humanity, a faint spectre trailing a hungry ghost.
Is there something lost in a young person who spends four hours a day on social networks that wasn't lost in the past?
I do think so, unfortunately, yes. I think it is becoming increasingly harder to ascertain what is real and what are shadows on the cave wall. The main motive for social media is to influence its audience and participants: following the chord back to the wall leads to money and following the money leads to profit motives. At risk, too, is the private imagination: the ability to decide and define ideals such as "beauty" or "joy", "success" and "content". With the indoctrination of certain values and definitions, comes the loss of the individual to humbly choose their own definitions at their own discretion.
I also see a decline in mental acuity - this is not to say that the young person in your question is "dumb" or "stupid" - it's just that it's more common than ever that a young person who is on social media has a higher chance of their dopamine cycle hijacked by a paradoxical promise of instant gratification. There is a lot of conditioning happening within those near daily four hours; a lot of conditioning that might take years to undo.
There's also a joke I stole (I can't recall from whom!): I wish I would have learned the saxophone…20 years ago. There's a point to be made that when we give our time, attention, mental focus and general energy to social media, other doors close, sometimes loudly and sometimes quietly. This is also important, I find: to be able to become cognizant that "my" time on this planet is limited and that I better wake up and smell the coffee and flowers, before it's too late.
In your opinion, how did the silence of a ten-year-old child, eight years ago, compare to that of a child today?
This is an interesting question (well, all of them are!), and, truth be told, I'm having a difficult time answering it.
I honestly don't see a huge difference in what that silence might mean. I do think that we are becoming noisier as a society, though. I do however see a very high contrast between high dopamine activity/stimulation and boredom. I wonder sometimes, while teaching, if the silence I sometimes receive is mere dissociation or if it really is intent attention. For me, this tracks: I grew up having ADHD (untreated) and remember "blackouts" of information. Silence, for example, when I was 10 meant almost a quiet calm and the chance to listen to self and watch my own mind. I would be very surprised if the kiddos of the new generations weren't feeling and experiencing silence in, at least, some related way.
Do you think the problem is the phone itself, or does the phone expose an emptiness that was already there? And if it is the latter: where does this emptiness come from?
The phone is just the medium, the message. In the past 400 years of global philosophy, we've come to question the difference between an image and reality itself. The conversation doesn't seem to be quite mainstream, though. We, collectively, don't seem to recognize that the Big Mac advertisement is an ideal form, manipulated and produced in order to drive sales. When we then go (desperately) purchase a Big Mac, we find that it isn't anything like what was promised to us. (This is absolutely not a jab at fastfood workers, but rather an attack of marketers.)
I find that the emptiness is a result of a cognitive dissonance that comes from trying to make one's fantasy life (as fed by expectations of "joy", "beautiful", "successful", etc. via social media) and the reality of a sometimes doldrummy or mundane life. Emptiness also (and possibly a passive nihilism?) sets in when we become apathetic to the maelstrom of death toll news and seemingly never-changing political feedback loops. We become numb and hopeless, if we feed into the feed too much.
In what kind of case, if any, do you believe a child would be better off with a screen than without one?
One could argue there are many. The younger generations are growing up with and into this influx of ever expedient technology. I think as a tool for learning, if the motive is really to learn and dig deep, screens are an amazing asset. When I ask what the "pros" are for social media, each class has at least one student answer "learning": this could be a well known YouTuber who teaches the more arcane topics (Math, Chemistry, Science, etc). Whenever I say that YouTuber's name, the room lights up with glee - a connection is made. Many of the students also speak more than passable English. I think this is largely due to their access to a global network.
Is there anything about the way adults use screens that would seem strange or incomprehensible to a young person?
I see screens as almost neutral stages for information presented. It seems like screens are becoming more and more about entertainment/entrainment and wholly biased, not neutral anymore. This is where I think the main dissonance between adults and young persons arises: the methods in which we use screens and to what end effect.
I do a fair bit of reading from screens and when I tell students this, they furl their brow as if in a faint mood of disgust. Screens have been iconic to dopamine and fastpaced information: it seems almost alien that someone would read from them, for fun and enjoyment. Interestingly though - a while ago I told a group that I also play online chess and the response was one of bewilderment. They asked why I would play online, when playing in person seemed so much more rewarding. That was funny. We flipped the scripts, Freaky-Friday-like.