Latest news with #MaryFrancesRuskell
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Yahoo
Why are Dutch kids the world's happiest? A teenager weighs in
EDITOR'S NOTE: Mary Frances Ruskell graduated from high school last month in Columbia, South Carolina. She will be attending Dartmouth College in the fall. The summer before sixth grade, my friend Lou and I discovered an empty lot with an abandoned dock on the lake in her neighborhood in Columbia, South Carolina. It was always magical there. We only went in the late afternoon to avoid the heat, when the light was sliding into evening and the cicadas and frogs were sit on the dock eating candy and drinking slushees for hours. Those are some of my favorite summer memories from elementary and middle school. My parents gave me a long leash as a kid, provided I was home before the streetlamps turned on. I walked long distances, especially in the summer when I had more time. I'd wander down to the neighborhood drugstore for gummy candies, or all the way to a main shopping street to try on clothes I couldn't afford. I'd walk to restaurants, coffee shops and far-flung friends' houses. It was fun, and it taught me how to be on my own in the world, in its own small way. But I was a rare free-range child among my peers. Dozens of kids my age lived in the neighborhood, but only three were allowed to walk to my house to ask if I wanted to play when we were in elementary school. The other parents didn't let their kids go off in the neighborhood on their own. Instead, they called my mom to set up playdates in what felt like the far-off future. I appreciate how much effort and organization that took, but when you're a little kid, the desire to play was immediate. It was frustrating. When I visited friends in the Netherlands in March, the Dutch kids I encountered reminded me of my own childhood roaming my neighborhood. I was staying in Haarlem, a small storybook city outside of Amsterdam, with Tracy, a family friend and American expat now living in the Netherlands. Her three kids were born there and are being raised Dutch. They were always in and out of the apartment, headed to school, restaurants and friends' houses. These kinds of comings and goings aren't unique to their family. Many Dutch children enjoy a freedom of movement that most American kids don't, which might be the key to why Dutch kids are the happiest kids in the world, according to a 2025 UNICEF report. The agency measured childhood well-being in 43 countries that are members of the European Union and/or the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. The US was not fully ranked in mental health because researchers were missing relevant data. Even without a definitive mental health ranking for American children, I still think Dutch kids are far happier than American kids like me. Articles discussing the report offer lots of different answers as to why this happiness gap exists: better health care, high-trust culture, less pressure to excel academically. But when I asked parents and children in the Netherlands why they thought their children were so happy, they all had one answer: Dutch parents value giving their children independence, possibly above all else. American parents say they value independence, too. Nearly three-quarters of American parents with children ages 5 to 8 say 'they make it a point to have their child do things themselves, when possible,' according to the 2023 C.S. Mott Children's Hospital National Poll on Children's Health. The poll also found that among parents of children ages 9 to 11, '84% agree that children benefit from having free time without adult supervision.' So, if both American and Dutch parents value independence, why do Dutch kids seem so much happier? I wonder if the key difference lies in how both sets of parents understand what freedom for kids looks like. 'Dutch parenting is all about raising self-sufficient kids,' Tracy told me. 'My older two (ages 12 and 14) bike more than 10 kilometers (6 miles) daily to school since there are no school buses. 'If a teacher cancels a class, students just have free time instead of a substitute. My 14-year-old had two canceled classes this morning and simply stayed home until noon. This would be a logistical nightmare for schools and parents if we didn't just expect our kids to sort it out.' Dutch parenting, according to the close to a dozen parents in the Netherlands I spoke with, emphasizes allowing children a freedom of movement that many American kids don't have. When I was in Haarlem and Amsterdam, bikes and little kids on bikes were everywhere. Dutch kids get bicycles at an early age, Tracy told me, and that gives them the ability to move around their towns and cities by themselves. I also saw plenty of kids walking with their friends to stores and restaurants. Generally speaking, Dutch children and teens are allowed to move freely through the world. Most American kids don't have anything close to this degree of freedom. Only 33% of American children between the ages of 9 and 11 are allowed to bike or walk to a friend's house alone, according to the Mott survey. One-half are allowed to find an item at a store while a parent is in another aisle, and 15% may trick-or-treat with friends on their own. They cannot move through the world without their parents there. There may be many reasons why American parents are limiting their kids' physical independence, but the main reason seems to be concern for children's safety. American parents are afraid for their children's well-being, and that makes them anxious. In fact, 40% of parents report being extremely worried about their children struggling with depression or anxiety, and 36% report being 'somewhat' concerned, according to a 2023 Pew Research Center survey of American parenting. More than 4 in 10 parents describe themselves as overprotective, the survey noted. That may be why they limit their child's freedom of movement. That lack of freedom of movement might be undermining what parents say they actually want for their children: well-being. After all, don't parents protect their kids so they'll be happy and healthy? A team of researchers concluded in a 2023 study that 'a primary cause of the rise in mental disorders is a decline over decades in opportunities for children and teens to play, roam, and engage in other activities independent of direct oversight and control by adults.' The study's researchers argue that independent activity in adolescents leads to the well-being that parents want. Independent activities require young people to make their own decisions and find their own solutions, leading to the development of a strong 'internal locus of control,' the researchers noted. That locus refers to a person's tendency to believe they have control over their life and can solve problems as they arise. A weak internal locus of control, stemming from less independence in adolescence, often leads to anxiety or depression. My high school classmate Cal commented on this anxiety once when we were talking about how Gen Z apparently parties less. 'People are too scared for their kids to go and do stuff, and I think, as a result (we) as a generation are too scared to do stuff now.' I'm not a parent, and I'm not trying to tell anyone how to raise their children. But I did just graduate from high school, so I know what modern childhood is like. I remember how wonderful and rare it was being able to wander in elementary and middle school, so I hope my perspective might be helpful to some anxious parents. This summer, consider letting your kids walk to the neighborhood park without you. Or give them money to buy an ice cream cone without your supervision. Encourage them to invite a friend. Let them have some physical freedom, and the memories that come with it. Get inspired by a weekly roundup on living well, made simple. Sign up for CNN's Life, But Better newsletter for information and tools designed to improve your well-being.
CNN
2 days ago
- CNN
Why are Dutch kids the world's happiest? A teenager weighs in
EDITOR'S NOTE: Mary Frances Ruskell graduated from high school last month in Columbia, South Carolina. She will be attending Dartmouth College in the fall. The summer before sixth grade, my friend Lou and I discovered an empty lot with an abandoned dock on the lake in her neighborhood in Columbia, South Carolina. It was always magical there. We only went in the late afternoon to avoid the heat, when the light was sliding into evening and the cicadas and frogs were sit on the dock eating candy and drinking slushees for hours. Those are some of my favorite summer memories from elementary and middle school. My parents gave me a long leash as a kid, provided I was home before the streetlamps turned on. I walked long distances, especially in the summer when I had more time. I'd wander down to the neighborhood drugstore for gummy candies, or all the way to a main shopping street to try on clothes I couldn't afford. I'd walk to restaurants, coffee shops and far-flung friends' houses. It was fun, and it taught me how to be on my own in the world, in its own small way. But I was a rare free-range child among my peers. Dozens of kids my age lived in the neighborhood, but only three were allowed to walk to my house to ask if I wanted to play when we were in elementary school. The other parents didn't let their kids go off in the neighborhood on their own. Instead, they called my mom to set up playdates in what felt like the far-off future. I appreciate how much effort and organization that took, but when you're a little kid, the desire to play was immediate. It was frustrating. When I visited friends in the Netherlands in March, the Dutch kids I encountered reminded me of my own childhood roaming my neighborhood. I was staying in Haarlem, a small storybook city outside of Amsterdam, with Tracy, a family friend and American expat now living in the Netherlands. Her three kids were born there and are being raised Dutch. They were always in and out of the apartment, headed to school, restaurants and friends' houses. These kinds of comings and goings aren't unique to their family. Many Dutch children enjoy a freedom of movement that most American kids don't, which might be the key to why Dutch kids are the happiest kids in the world, according to a 2025 UNICEF report. The agency measured childhood well-being in 43 countries that are members of the European Union and/or the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. The US was not fully ranked in mental health because researchers were missing relevant data. Even without a definitive mental health ranking for American children, I still think Dutch kids are far happier than American kids like me. Articles discussing the report offer lots of different answers as to why this happiness gap exists: better health care, high-trust culture, less pressure to excel academically. But when I asked parents and children in the Netherlands why they thought their children were so happy, they all had one answer: Dutch parents value giving their children independence, possibly above all else. American parents say they value independence, too. Nearly three-quarters of American parents with children ages 5 to 8 say 'they make it a point to have their child do things themselves, when possible,' according to the 2023 C.S. Mott Children's Hospital National Poll on Children's Health. The poll also found that among parents of children ages 9 to 11, '84% agree that children benefit from having free time without adult supervision.' So, if both American and Dutch parents value independence, why do Dutch kids seem so much happier? I wonder if the key difference lies in how both sets of parents understand what freedom for kids looks like. 'Dutch parenting is all about raising self-sufficient kids,' Tracy told me. 'My older two (ages 12 and 14) bike more than 10 kilometers (6 miles) daily to school since there are no school buses. 'If a teacher cancels a class, students just have free time instead of a substitute. My 14-year-old had two canceled classes this morning and simply stayed home until noon. This would be a logistical nightmare for schools and parents if we didn't just expect our kids to sort it out.' Dutch parenting, according to the close to a dozen parents in the Netherlands I spoke with, emphasizes allowing children a freedom of movement that many American kids don't have. When I was in Haarlem and Amsterdam, bikes and little kids on bikes were everywhere. Dutch kids get bicycles at an early age, Tracy told me, and that gives them the ability to move around their towns and cities by themselves. I also saw plenty of kids walking with their friends to stores and restaurants. Generally speaking, Dutch children and teens are allowed to move freely through the world. Most American kids don't have anything close to this degree of freedom. Only 33% of American children between the ages of 9 and 11 are allowed to bike or walk to a friend's house alone, according to the Mott survey. One-half are allowed to find an item at a store while a parent is in another aisle, and 15% may trick-or-treat with friends on their own. They cannot move through the world without their parents there. There may be many reasons why American parents are limiting their kids' physical independence, but the main reason seems to be concern for children's safety. American parents are afraid for their children's well-being, and that makes them anxious. In fact, 40% of parents report being extremely worried about their children struggling with depression or anxiety, and 36% report being 'somewhat' concerned, according to a 2023 Pew Research Center survey of American parenting. More than 4 in 10 parents describe themselves as overprotective, the survey noted. That may be why they limit their child's freedom of movement. That lack of freedom of movement might be undermining what parents say they actually want for their children: well-being. After all, don't parents protect their kids so they'll be happy and healthy? A team of researchers concluded in a 2023 study that 'a primary cause of the rise in mental disorders is a decline over decades in opportunities for children and teens to play, roam, and engage in other activities independent of direct oversight and control by adults.' The study's researchers argue that independent activity in adolescents leads to the well-being that parents want. Independent activities require young people to make their own decisions and find their own solutions, leading to the development of a strong 'internal locus of control,' the researchers noted. That locus refers to a person's tendency to believe they have control over their life and can solve problems as they arise. A weak internal locus of control, stemming from less independence in adolescence, often leads to anxiety or depression. My high school classmate Cal commented on this anxiety once when we were talking about how Gen Z apparently parties less. 'People are too scared for their kids to go and do stuff, and I think, as a result (we) as a generation are too scared to do stuff now.' I'm not a parent, and I'm not trying to tell anyone how to raise their children. But I did just graduate from high school, so I know what modern childhood is like. I remember how wonderful and rare it was being able to wander in elementary and middle school, so I hope my perspective might be helpful to some anxious parents. This summer, consider letting your kids walk to the neighborhood park without you. Or give them money to buy an ice cream cone without your supervision. Encourage them to invite a friend. Let them have some physical freedom, and the memories that come with it. Get inspired by a weekly roundup on living well, made simple. Sign up for CNN's Life, But Better newsletter for information and tools designed to improve your well-being.
CNN
2 days ago
- CNN
Why are Dutch kids the world's happiest? A teenager weighs in
EDITOR'S NOTE: Mary Frances Ruskell graduated from high school last month in Columbia, South Carolina. She will be attending Dartmouth College in the fall. The summer before sixth grade, my friend Lou and I discovered an empty lot with an abandoned dock on the lake in her neighborhood in Columbia, South Carolina. It was always magical there. We only went in the late afternoon to avoid the heat, when the light was sliding into evening and the cicadas and frogs were sit on the dock eating candy and drinking slushees for hours. Those are some of my favorite summer memories from elementary and middle school. My parents gave me a long leash as a kid, provided I was home before the streetlamps turned on. I walked long distances, especially in the summer when I had more time. I'd wander down to the neighborhood drugstore for gummy candies, or all the way to a main shopping street to try on clothes I couldn't afford. I'd walk to restaurants, coffee shops and far-flung friends' houses. It was fun, and it taught me how to be on my own in the world, in its own small way. But I was a rare free-range child among my peers. Dozens of kids my age lived in the neighborhood, but only three were allowed to walk to my house to ask if I wanted to play when we were in elementary school. The other parents didn't let their kids go off in the neighborhood on their own. Instead, they called my mom to set up playdates in what felt like the far-off future. I appreciate how much effort and organization that took, but when you're a little kid, the desire to play was immediate. It was frustrating. When I visited friends in the Netherlands in March, the Dutch kids I encountered reminded me of my own childhood roaming my neighborhood. I was staying in Haarlem, a small storybook city outside of Amsterdam, with Tracy, a family friend and American expat now living in the Netherlands. Her three kids were born there and are being raised Dutch. They were always in and out of the apartment, headed to school, restaurants and friends' houses. These kinds of comings and goings aren't unique to their family. Many Dutch children enjoy a freedom of movement that most American kids don't, which might be the key to why Dutch kids are the happiest kids in the world, according to a 2025 UNICEF report. The agency measured childhood well-being in 43 countries that are members of the European Union and/or the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. The US was not fully ranked in mental health because researchers were missing relevant data. Even without a definitive mental health ranking for American children, I still think Dutch kids are far happier than American kids like me. Articles discussing the report offer lots of different answers as to why this happiness gap exists: better health care, high-trust culture, less pressure to excel academically. But when I asked parents and children in the Netherlands why they thought their children were so happy, they all had one answer: Dutch parents value giving their children independence, possibly above all else. American parents say they value independence, too. Nearly three-quarters of American parents with children ages 5 to 8 say 'they make it a point to have their child do things themselves, when possible,' according to the 2023 C.S. Mott Children's Hospital National Poll on Children's Health. The poll also found that among parents of children ages 9 to 11, '84% agree that children benefit from having free time without adult supervision.' So, if both American and Dutch parents value independence, why do Dutch kids seem so much happier? I wonder if the key difference lies in how both sets of parents understand what freedom for kids looks like. 'Dutch parenting is all about raising self-sufficient kids,' Tracy told me. 'My older two (ages 12 and 14) bike more than 10 kilometers (6 miles) daily to school since there are no school buses. 'If a teacher cancels a class, students just have free time instead of a substitute. My 14-year-old had two canceled classes this morning and simply stayed home until noon. This would be a logistical nightmare for schools and parents if we didn't just expect our kids to sort it out.' Dutch parenting, according to the close to a dozen parents in the Netherlands I spoke with, emphasizes allowing children a freedom of movement that many American kids don't have. When I was in Haarlem and Amsterdam, bikes and little kids on bikes were everywhere. Dutch kids get bicycles at an early age, Tracy told me, and that gives them the ability to move around their towns and cities by themselves. I also saw plenty of kids walking with their friends to stores and restaurants. Generally speaking, Dutch children and teens are allowed to move freely through the world. Most American kids don't have anything close to this degree of freedom. Only 33% of American children between the ages of 9 and 11 are allowed to bike or walk to a friend's house alone, according to the Mott survey. One-half are allowed to find an item at a store while a parent is in another aisle, and 15% may trick-or-treat with friends on their own. They cannot move through the world without their parents there. There may be many reasons why American parents are limiting their kids' physical independence, but the main reason seems to be concern for children's safety. American parents are afraid for their children's well-being, and that makes them anxious. In fact, 40% of parents report being extremely worried about their children struggling with depression or anxiety, and 36% report being 'somewhat' concerned, according to a 2023 Pew Research Center survey of American parenting. More than 4 in 10 parents describe themselves as overprotective, the survey noted. That may be why they limit their child's freedom of movement. That lack of freedom of movement might be undermining what parents say they actually want for their children: well-being. After all, don't parents protect their kids so they'll be happy and healthy? A team of researchers concluded in a 2023 study that 'a primary cause of the rise in mental disorders is a decline over decades in opportunities for children and teens to play, roam, and engage in other activities independent of direct oversight and control by adults.' The study's researchers argue that independent activity in adolescents leads to the well-being that parents want. Independent activities require young people to make their own decisions and find their own solutions, leading to the development of a strong 'internal locus of control,' the researchers noted. That locus refers to a person's tendency to believe they have control over their life and can solve problems as they arise. A weak internal locus of control, stemming from less independence in adolescence, often leads to anxiety or depression. My high school classmate Cal commented on this anxiety once when we were talking about how Gen Z apparently parties less. 'People are too scared for their kids to go and do stuff, and I think, as a result (we) as a generation are too scared to do stuff now.' I'm not a parent, and I'm not trying to tell anyone how to raise their children. But I did just graduate from high school, so I know what modern childhood is like. I remember how wonderful and rare it was being able to wander in elementary and middle school, so I hope my perspective might be helpful to some anxious parents. This summer, consider letting your kids walk to the neighborhood park without you. Or give them money to buy an ice cream cone without your supervision. Encourage them to invite a friend. Let them have some physical freedom, and the memories that come with it. Get inspired by a weekly roundup on living well, made simple. Sign up for CNN's Life, But Better newsletter for information and tools designed to improve your well-being.
Yahoo
29-01-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Teens like me don't trust AI-generated content. Here's why
Editor's note: Mary Frances Ruskell is a senior at Heathwood Hall Episcopal School in Columbia, South Carolina. My friend Sammy turned around at his desk and grinned at me. He held out his phone and waved it in front of my face, the universal sign for 'Look at this!' It was a video of a capybara in a swimming pool, seemingly treading water like a human does, feet down and arms circling. Last year, I would have believed the post I saw on that screen and accepted it as part of what I know to be true about the world: capybaras tread water like people. Now, I wasn't sure. Even though teens spend so much of our lives online, a new study by Common Sense Media found that teens between the ages of 13 and 18 increasingly do not trust the content they consume online. With the emergence of generative AI — a type of artificial intelligence that produces content such as images, text and videos — it has become easy to quickly produce fake visual content. My friends and I have noticed these AI-generated images flooding social media platforms. Many teens struggle to figure out what online content is real and what is fake, according to the study. Some 46% said they either know that they have been misled by content or suspect that they have been, while 54% have seen visual content that 'was real, but misleading.' Collected by Ipsos Public Affairs on behalf of Common Sense Media from March to May 2024, the survey data is from a nationally representative survey that includes responses from 1,045 American adults (age 18 or older) who are parents or guardians of one or more teens age 13 to 18, and responses from one of the teenage children in each of those parents' families. Maybe the teens who reported that they haven't been misled are just absolute aces at spotting fake images, but I wonder if they just haven't realized that they have, in fact, been swindled by AI images. 'Many kids don't see flaws that they aren't trained to detect,' said Robbie Torney, Common Sense Media's senior director of AI programs, in an email. 'Knowing that the media we consume can be retouched, modified, or even fake, it's crucial that we all learn to think critically about information we encounter.' I think that I'm generally pretty good at spotting AI images, but there was once a time when I believed that I couldn't be fooled. That was mostly in the early days of generative AI, when people in AI-generated photos typically had 15 fingers. But I no longer think I can't be fooled. More than 70% of the surveyed teens who have experienced deceptive visual content reported it has changed how they view the accuracy of content. I'm part of that group now. After a few too many cool posts of alleged historical pictures that turned out to be fake, I generally distrust most pictures I see if they are not posted by someone I know. I examine the fingers of any human picture first, since I know AI can still get the number of human fingers wrong. I have begun checking the comments of nearly every post I come across to see whether other users believe it. Doubt in the back of my mind now colors my response to everything I look at, and what I think. Since third grade, I have been warned about checking sources and not believing everything you read. I have been generally distrustful of information from the internet for years, so AI has not suddenly damaged my trust in online information. What has changed is my trust in images. Seeing is not believing anymore. I used to accept photos as fact. Before AI, there were programs people used to photoshop images, but those images are still real images of real people, just tweaked. Colors could be changed, and things could be cut out — but the original photo was an image of real life. As generative AI improves, however, completely fake content is getting harder for me to spot. One of the primary ways that my friends and I communicate is with images and videos. Memes are their own form of communication. Sharing an Instagram post about some weird scientific fact or interesting historical photo shows you know what a friend would find interesting. Sending someone funny video clips is a form of affection. It tells someone you remember them and lets you share an inside joke. While I'm no longer a heavy social media user, I still probably see hundreds of images a day online. Other teens who spend more time on Instagram than I do or who use TikTok might see thousands. If those 'photos' are just images cobbled together by a machine, wholly detached from anything real, what can I believe? I already doubt everything I read online. This mistrust is spreading into teens' offline lives. Studies show that teens already have low trust in institutions such as the government and news media. Doubt in the world around us is rampant among my friends. It's common for me to hear dismissive statements thrown around, even about the textbooks we read in class. I've heard refrains like 'Eh, maybe they did that,' 'Might be true,' and 'I don't believe that' thrown out about anything and everything. My classmates and I often doubt the news, history and authority figures. If teens can no longer trust what they read, hear or see online, why should they trust anything? In a generation in which mistrust could very well become the default approach to life, what can a person rely on? Or hope for? What's the point of caring about anything, if it could all be false? One of my teachers thinks that members of Generation Z (born between 1997 and 2012) are nihilists, whether they know it or not. My friends and I struggle with these questions, and I think my teacher may be right. How does this get fixed? The Common Sense study found that 74% of teens agree that generative AI 'should have visible warnings that its outputs could be harmful, biased, or wrong.' And 73% of teens want content generated by AI 'to be labeled or watermarked' to show its source. I believe this demand is because we're losing ground in what we can believe. I wish that I could trust what I see, and AI-generated content being required to be marked as fake is a reassuring idea. 'The growing mistrust in AI mirrors historical challenges with media literacy,' Torney said via email. 'Just as we learned to evaluate traditional media by asking 'who created this?' and why was it made?', we must now apply these same critical thinking skills to AI-generated content.' It's a good solution, no doubt. But it still means that we cannot initially trust what we see. Instead, we must examine it, question it, and have faith in ourselves that we've come to the right conclusion. People say that social media and increased time online is making us lonely because of the absence of physical connection. And maybe that's part of the deep loneliness, and the increasing anxiety and depression we know teenagers today report. But if this loss of trust continues, I think we'll become even more individualistic and form shallower connections with each other. If mistrust becomes the default approach to life, what would be the point of doing anything for other people that you don't already know? Will we be able to get to know each other deeply, or successfully communicate? Can you really build a life when you don't know what is real and what is fake, when you can never trust what you see, what you learn, or how the world works? Artificial intelligence is just that: artificial. When some of the main tools you use as a teenager to connect with real friends — memes and social media — are corrupted with artificiality, how do you make real connections? When the main way teenagers learn about the bigger world outside of their schools and towns is the internet, can we ever understand the world? Get inspired by a weekly roundup on living well, made simple. Sign up for CNN's Life, But Better newsletter for information and tools designed to improve your well-being.
