It's not much better with adults. I see it even with people in my age (I'm in my sixties). I take long walks (several hours) with my dog and if I tell about it to people the same age as me, a common question follows – "What headphones you use?". I don't use headphones, it's only me with my thoughts. And people say that they can't do it (any more).

It's amazing how many people are absolutely terrified of a being a little bit bored.

It's good that you're able to go on walks without headphones, and we probably are too aurally stimulated as a society, but the Sony Walkman came out in 1979. You're applauding yourself for not falling prey to a mode of distraction that has been around since your twenties.

It has less to do with the availability of portable audio tech and more to do with the insane amount of media people feel compelled to consume.

Back then, if you rocked a Walkman, you carried 1 tape (about 60 minutes of music) that you listened to on repeat all day. That's very different from today's never ending stream of new media. A more interesting discussion would be about how we interact with media today vs back then.

That was way different. Finding a specific album from a specific band that you like and engaging with it is much different than being plugged into a nonstop 24/7 flood. People are listening to podcasts, audiobooks, or algorithm derived playlists.

Binge watching a reality dating show is not the same as intentionally watching a documentary about a subject you are interested in. The medium is not the key factor there.

But if the medium isn't the key factor then why did OP place the emphasis on the medium—headphones?

How do you know that their interlocutors aren't listening to self-curated playlists a la mixtapes or to a carefully selected audiobook?

It isn’t about the specific mode of distraction, but that most people can’t go without it for any length of time. The ability to just “be bored” and allow your thoughts and observations of things around you to ebb and flow, without some sort of instant gratification, is a skill or discipline that is eroded by content stimulation. In the same way the discipline of a balanced healthy diet is eroded by empty calories and super caloric food that messes with your reward centers. If I say I am the only one that can avoid grabbing a donut when they are brought into the office, it isn’t about donuts specifically but an illustration of the broader problem with food.

I'm glad I don't/can't do walks with headphones either, I'd rather hear the sounds of the environment (either nature, or to know if an uncontrolled car is coming at me). Only if I'm sitting in public transport/on a plane do I put them on.

It's funny. I was in a waiting room the other day and everyone, young and old were passing the time on their phones. I just sat there relaxed and enjoyed the quiet and the fact that I didn't have any immediate obligations I had to fulfill.

I think it's because a lot of adults cannot empathize with the lack of self-regulation in children and young adults. They imagine themselves being able to reject the social media firehose (whether true or not ...) and have no real model of being in a formative state.

I was like this(having a lack of self regulation when young), in NA our philosophy leads us to think we have lots of ‘free will’ but our will is not arbitrarily strong and this should be our model of self. Celebrating individualism is good but taken too far makes us think ‘oh I could quit heroin at any time, it’s just a question of willpower, which is the best virtue’

That's a positive view on it.

My view is that the "adults" are just as addicted as the kids and are afraid to admit it.

There is a shocking amount of "Adults" who are just big kids really. It seems lots of people go through middle and high school and don't absorb anything other than "y=mx+b", if even that.

I guess I shouldn't be surprised. They were always loudly complaining about being made to read classical literature. "Whats the point" says people who insist they are independent thinkers.

Sorry but have you seen "most adults"? They're the worst. It's how we have America ran by a guy who makes Idiocracy's president look amazing.

I know. I guess I tend to focus on the adults who I think are in principle trying and reachable, because I think there we can make a difference by popularizing the right information.

Impliying those are adults and not oversized children /s

> TikTok, Snapchat, Meta (FB, Instagram) - all this garbage needs to go, at least for anyone younger than 18.

All this garbage needs to go — period. We've seen time and time again that attempts to age-restrict Internet content with law just result in violations of privacy, while kids can still access such content with simple workarounds.

Youtube (esp. shorts)

Do you think you could have a word with the other thread where Discord is introducing age verification (due to a new UK law) and people are acting like it's the Stasi?

People can be against the harms that social media inflict in children without supporting rampant violations of privacy.

Discord's case is especially egregrious because there's so much low-hanging fruit they could pick to make kids safer on their platform.