The teen mental illness epidemic is international – Part 1: The Anglosphere • Hacker News Board

Re: The teen mental illness epidemic is international – Part 1: The Anglosphere

#251

Post by PuppyTailWags » Wed, Mar 29, 2023, 7:34 PM UTC

dragonwriter wrote: post #243

PuppyTailWags wrote: post #227

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> And it's no coincidence young female teens are by far the most susceptible to transition to the opposite role: social media tells them "they were born in the wrong bodies". Um, statistically, trans women are more common than trans men.

> Um, statistically, trans women are more common than trans men. I think it is somewhat more common for people who are AFAB to identify as non-binary than for people who are AMAB to do so, which if you consider it part of the same broad class of things might be sufficient to tip the balance back to that side. Not that I endorse the “social contagion” theory GP is spouting, in the least.

Yeah I googled around more and saw its a 1:1:1 (trans man, trans woman, nonbinary). Still doesn't really follow the stated narrative though.

Re: The teen mental illness epidemic is international – Part 1: The Anglosphere

#252

Post by naasking » Wed, Mar 29, 2023, 7:34 PM UTC

alexfromapex wrote: post #30

Flatcircle wrote: post #2

Saw a post on Paul Graham's twitter about this, turns out white, liberal female teens were the most depressed, for whatever reason, that's a strange specific group to be extremely depressed imho.

I would love to explore Reddit's influence on this phenomenon. The timelines seem to sync somewhat and it seems like a perfect vehicle for adversarial nation states to use to influence public opinion.

I can't imagine Reddit userbase having enough teen girls in 2012 to cause this, especially as compared to Instagram.

Re: The teen mental illness epidemic is international – Part 1: The Anglosphere

#253

Post by WeylandYutani » Wed, Mar 29, 2023, 7:34 PM UTC

stametseater wrote: post #92

ssully wrote: post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Being drunk during all of your free time is socializing?

That account is only the perspective of somebody who obviously didn't feel included and left the town. I bet people who like living in that town would describe it differently. What else do we really know? For all we know, the guy who left was a teetotaler and would characterize any social gathering with a few beers present as "everybody getting drunk."

I had this conversation with friends. I wondered if they were snorting cocaine because it was fun or if it was a medication to get through the stress of life.

Re: The teen mental illness epidemic is international – Part 1: The Anglosphere

#254

Post by giantg2 » Wed, Mar 29, 2023, 7:34 PM UTC

dragonwriter wrote: post #223

giantg2 wrote: post #173

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"that is constrained by a gender role where aesthetic appeal and social interactions are the most valuable assets?" In theory we should have seen a spike and then slow decline as gender norms and roles continue to become less segregating. "Yet other categories see linear or token increases." Yeah, because other categories may manifest their problems differently. Such as young men turning to violence and drugs more th…

> as gender norms and roles continue to become less segregating But, gender roles and stereotypes are being more forcibly institutionalized, not becoming less segregating. Particularly in the US.

How so?

In my opinion it seems like there is more institutionalize going on, but that's only a subset of restrictions that are being rolled back. Eg. If 25 states roll back restrictions (or implement protections) and the other 25 reinforce those restrictions, then you still have a 50% reduction. On the corporate side, I've seen a ton of protections/benefits being increased which didn't exist anywhere even 10 years ago.

Re: The teen mental illness epidemic is international – Part 1: The Anglosphere

#255

Post by ttt3ts » Wed, Mar 29, 2023, 7:35 PM UTC

irq wrote: post #250

ttt3ts wrote: post #230

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Or the world has always had issues and the lense through which we now view the world is an everpresent fear coaster. Step away from the news & social media for a few months. You can't effect the outcome anyway and you might find you're happier.

Ignorance is indeed bliss, right up until they’re at your door. I like to have advance warning.

So you can? (serious question not sarcastic)

Re: The teen mental illness epidemic is international – Part 1: The Anglosphere

#256

Post by ModernMech » Wed, Mar 29, 2023, 7:36 PM UTC

Arrath wrote: post #28

sdwr wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Gotta look at which way the cookie crumbles or the beam shears - how stress is distributed in a system. If you take for granted that there is a large amount of emotional strain floating around, where are the outlets? Men bottle it up and retake control (school shootings, as an extreme). People with precarious lives can express the stress as worry and fear (mostly women). Depression is a luxury version of stress - not…

> Depression is a luxury version of stress - not happy, but also physically safe and not worried for your well-being. That certainly is A Take on Depression.

One of the main attitudes that perpetuates and exacerbates depression, imo.

Let's not forget that depression can end in death through suicide. It's a serious life-threatening illness.

Re: The teen mental illness epidemic is international – Part 1: The Anglosphere

#257

Post by bluescrn » Wed, Mar 29, 2023, 7:36 PM UTC

alexfromapex wrote: post #30

Flatcircle wrote: post #2

Saw a post on Paul Graham's twitter about this, turns out white, liberal female teens were the most depressed, for whatever reason, that's a strange specific group to be extremely depressed imho.

I would love to explore Reddit's influence on this phenomenon. The timelines seem to sync somewhat and it seems like a perfect vehicle for adversarial nation states to use to influence public opinion.

Wasn't Tumblr confusing teenage brains well before Reddit really took off?

But yeah, social media sites should be treated as the powerful propaganda weapons that they have become, not just a casual way to pass the time.

Re: The teen mental illness epidemic is international – Part 1: The Anglosphere

#258

Post by Aunche » Wed, Mar 29, 2023, 7:37 PM UTC

ouid wrote: post #148

Aunche wrote: post #139

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What gave you the impression that I think nothing can be done? You can drive less, eat less meat, vote for certain politicians etc. What's a waste of mental energy is worrying that everyone else is going to do the same thing. This is often counterproductive to the problem it's trying to solve, like Greta Thunberg inspiring millions of kids to skip school in the name of "raising awareness."

What do you think mental energy is for? If none of those things seems like solutions to the existential threat, which, let's be honest, they don't. Then the problem is not yet solved. In any robust system, components are responsible for more than just their own personal contribution to failure. There needs to be a certain amount of redundancy. Convincing other people to care more about climate change, and to be more…

> Convincing other people to care more about climate change, and to be more willing to force society into common sacrifices for aggregate benefit takes a lot of footwork.

If they actually worked to make progress on this aspect, they would feel a sense of purpose rather than dread. Instead, what you're mostly seeing is virtue signalling that targets their own in-group and then being disappointed when that doesn't accomplish anything.

Climate activists can learn a lot by looking at the Civil Rights movement in the past. Before the big wins, there were voting drives, legal challenges, and organized carpools to encourage participation in the bus protests. This costs a lot more energy than telling people to skip school on social media, but participation is also significantly more fulfilling.

Re: The teen mental illness epidemic is international – Part 1: The Anglosphere

#259

Post by thaw13579 » Wed, Mar 29, 2023, 7:38 PM UTC

ttt3ts wrote: post #230

amilios wrote: post #207

(Seemingly) Inevitable climate change and ecological destruction, growing income inequality and falling standards of living, a deathly pandemic that's still killing people while we pretend everything is back to normal (+ long covid probably bringing about a disability crisis in 3-5 years), increasing tensions between various nuclear-capable states (Russia, China) and the West, changes in the age distribution in most…

Or the world has always had issues and the lense through which we now view the world is an everpresent fear coaster. Step away from the news & social media for a few months. You can't effect the outcome anyway and you might find you're happier.

Agreed the world has always had problems, but it feels more like a megaphone than a lens these days (found not only online, but also at work, school, and among friends). These problems also eventually reach people's doorsteps where they cannot be ignored by disconnecting from social media or socially isolating.

Re: The teen mental illness epidemic is international – Part 1: The Anglosphere

#260

Post by naasking » Wed, Mar 29, 2023, 7:40 PM UTC

detuned wrote: post #200

PuppyTailWags wrote: post #152

Note that this isn't an unbiased source. This is working with Jon, the co-writer of The Coddling Of The American Mind, which uhhh is not without its critics for inaccuracies and stretching of truth. Check it out: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-coddling-of-the-am...

He's also known for hinging a lot of what he says on the concept of rapid onset gender dysphoria (the idea that kids are spontaneously turning trans with no previous indicators due to a "social contagion"). The original study for it is a survey of posts from parents who don't want their kids to be trans. It shouldn't surprise anyone that those parents weren't in the best position to catch any hints when their kids mi…

You are way overstating this. Haidt might have been one of the early ones raising alarm bells, but it's well established now that the cohort of people declaring themselves to be trans has shifted dramatically to young girls only very recently [1].

[1] https://www.bmj.com/content/380/bmj.p382