By Mallory Mattingly
Former country star Granger Smith spoke with The Tech Exit author Clare Morell about how devices are “reshaping our children’s brains, desires and ability to enjoy real life.”
“What makes the iPad, the tablet, the smartphone, the social media app so addictive is that constant feedback — like, that’s what draws them back for more. And the companies know this — that they are hijacking our brains’ vulnerabilities and that we’re drawn to these social rewards,” Morell explained on Smith’s podcast. “And we should be getting them from people in real life, like that’s the feedback and approval of our peers.”
She continued: “But social media — and other apps too — I try to explain to parents, social media has crept into all these other kinds of apps advertised to younger kids. I’ve had so many parents say, ‘I thought my kid was just playing this educational game. I had no idea that they could actually be messaging with complete strangers on this app. They could be adding friends on this.'”
Morell went on to reveal that other apps outside of social media also hijack “our brains’ normal process of development, particularly in children, to start to turn outwards toward their peers, to look for feedback and approval. And the social media apps and these other apps that are kind of social media-lite are really hijacking that normal process of development and making kids extra sensitive.”
Kids who grow up on social media or other apps are “showing divergent brain development over time.” This means “that their brains are not proceeding to develop in a normal way but are becoming extremely overly sensitive to the kinds of social rewards that they get through these apps.”
Morell uses her platform to encourage parents to give their kids alternatives to screens.
“Children need friends who aren’t also on screens. And parents need to help their kids find those friends,” she shared in an Instagram post.
She tackles the topic head on in her book
While technology can seem benign — it’s just kids playing games with friends or watching funny videos — the reality is that devices are transforming children’s brains, keeping them from experiencing life to the full.
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