How This 23-Year-Old Plans to Save Her Generation from Social Media Addiction
By Movieguide® Contributor
Harvard graduate student Gabriela Nguyen explained why she gave up her smart phone and how she is helping others find freedom from social media addiction.
Nguyen traded in her smartphone for a flip phone after realizing just how much time she was wasting on the device. Like most Americans, she was addicted to social media and found herself turning to her phone any time she had freetime.
In fact, “Young social media users aged 18 to 22 account for a shocking 40% of all Americans addicted to social media,” AddictionHelp.com reported, adding that teens spend an average of seven hours and 22 minutes on screens each day.
Since quitting, Nguyen hasn’t looked back and is now helping others find their freedom through her program APPstinent.
APPstinent is a program designed to help others wane off their devices and enjoy an engaged life with the real world, rather than a life of chronic social media. The 30 day program helps Gen Z fix their social media habits in a realistic way, rather than through pure willpower.
“We focus on how social media degrades personal relationships and practical alternatives to keeping in touch with those you care about in a way that is uninterrupted by algorithms, persuasive design, and the whims of Big Tech,” APPstinent’s website explains. “We understand that social media is great for many other things, running a business, advocating for social change, etc. But for your best friend, classmates, and grandma it falls short.”
READ MORE: WHY DUMB PHONES ARE MAKING A COMEBACK AMONG GEN Z: ‘TIRED’ OF SCREENS
Because the program aims to help make a lasting change, it is honest about how it will affect those who opt into it. Because most people now use social media to keep in touch, APPstinent warns that those who partake in the program will likely fall out of touch with many people, however, these are people that you were never close with to begin with. It also focuses on strengthening relationships that matter by making them a priority as the user shifts away from social media.
Ultimately, it aims to help Gen Z free themselves from a reliance on social media and live a full life. Furthermore, Nguyen understands that technology has weakened many of Gen Z’s soft skills, and hopes her program can help them build the qualities they need to live a successful life.
“It is not our fault our childhoods were like this, but it is our responsibility for our own lives and the next generation to use our knowledge for course correction,” Nguyen told Mashable.
READ MORE: IS SOCIAL MEDIA DESTROYING GEN Z’S WORKPLACE POTENTIAL?
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