Posts by Ryan
A Big Win in the Headlines, But Is It Really?
Keeping kids safe online cannot fall entirely on parents or young people. Just as safe driving requires education, responsible manufacturers, well-designed roads and enforceable laws, protecting kids on the digital highway requires all of us.
Read MoreIs Gen Z Losing Trust, or Missing the Practice It Takes to Build It?
Gen Z reports historically low levels of trust, but could a lack of face-to-face practice be part of the reason? Here is how adults can help young people navigate conflict, build trust and develop deeper human connections.
Read MoreThe Personal Pocket Computer: What Gen Z Knows About Growing Up Online
I often call the smartphone a Personal Pocket Computer because that is what it really is. Think about how much time you spent today talking to someone on your “phone” compared with how much time you spent searching, scrolling, watching, shopping, working, taking pictures, checking directions, sending messages or consuming information. Making phone calls may be one of the things we do least with it.
Read MoreMore Than a Profile: Remembering the Human Behind the Screen
After spending hours on social media, a person can begin to feel like little more than something in the scroll. A human being becomes a photograph, a username, a comment, or a brief collection of LED pixels that appears for a few seconds before we swipe to whatever comes next.
Read MoreThe Last Generation to Grow Up Before the Digital World
I remember when a stick could become a sword, a rifle or a tool for exploring a creek, and today I can take a picture of that same stick and ask an artificial intelligence system what kind of tree it came from. I feel blessed to have experienced both.
Read MoreSome Teens Are Using AI for Mental Health Advice Before They Talk to Adults
It makes sense that a student walking into a counseling office may have already tried to sort things out with AI first. They may have asked ChatGPT, Gemini, Snapchat’s My AI, Character.AI, or another chatbot about stress, anxiety, sadness, loneliness, relationships, family conflict, friendship problems, or something they were not ready to say out loud yet.
Read MoreAre Kids Practicing Relationships or Just Managing Messages?
Kids do not become good at relationships by accident. They become good at relationships the same way they become good at anything else. They practice, and they need adults who understand that practice still has to happen somewhere.
Read MoreGRWM Videos, Social Media, and the Great Shift Toward a More Sexualized Childhood
As social media platforms evolve, the behavior on those platforms evolves too. The content gets faster, the trends get more extreme, and the pressure to be noticed gets stronger. The line between entertainment, identity, popularity, attention, and sexuality gets blurrier, and our kids are watching all of it.
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