One of our core values at GAC is Unplugging to Connect. Why are we so passionate about the importance of getting off our screens and spending more time in face-to-face interactions? Because it’s good for all of our well-being to improve the quality of our relationships and connection to our families, friends, and communities. We want our campers and staff to experience the positive difference it makes being in a screen-free environment, so that they are compelled to change their own screen habits. The big dream – the one that serves our vision of creating a happier world, is that we go out from our camp community and help bring positive collective action and change to how we all prioritize face-to-face connection outside of camp. 

There is now a lot of research-backed evidence about the negative impact excessive screen time is having on people across all generations. Excessive screen time is linked to negative impacts on mental and physical health, with children and teens particularly vulnerable. These impacts include increased anxiety and depression, sleep disturbances, obesity, and reduced cognitive function. The effects can also include behavioral problems, difficulty with social skills, and issues with academic performance.

According to research by Jean Twenge (iGen: Why Today’s Super-Connected Kids Are Growing Up Less Rebellious, More Tolerant, Less Happy — and Completely Unprepared for Adulthood):

After 1 h/day of use, more hours of daily screen time were associated with lower psychological well-being, including less curiosity, lower self-control, more distractibility, more difficulty making friends, less emotional stability, being more difficult to care for, and inability to finish tasks. Among 14- to 17-year-olds, high users of screens (7+ h/day vs. low users of 1 h/day) were more than twice as likely to ever have been diagnosed with depression (RR 2.39, 95% CI 1.54, 3.70), ever diagnosed with anxiety (RR 2.26, CI 1.59, 3.22), treated by a mental health professional (RR 2.22, CI 1.62, 3.03) or have taken medication for a psychological or behavioral issue (RR 2.99, CI 1.94, 4.62) in the last 12 months. Moderate use of screens (4 h/day) was also associated with lower psychological well-being.
Associations between screen time and lower psychological well-being among children and adolescents: Evidence from a population-based study, Dr. Jean Twenge

”Play-based childhood has been replaced by a screen-based childhood and the outcomes of this experiment are a nightmare – least flourishing generation in history.”
Jonathan Haidt 

Jonathan Haidt’s The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness (2024) presents a compelling argument about the rise in youth anxiety and mental health issues, particularly in the United States and other Western countries. He shares the research about how a play-based childhood became replaced by a phone-based childhood and how detrimental the change has been for children’s mental, physical, and social health. 

Around 2010–2015, most teens got smartphones and social media became central to their social lives. Platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat are designed to be addictive and encourage social comparison, validation seeking, and fear of missing out (FOMO). Rates of anxiety, depression, self-harm, and suicide have skyrocketed among teens—especially girls—since the early 2010s. Haidt links this surge directly to increased screen time, especially social media use.

We all feel the difference in how smart phones seemed to have taken over all of our lives. There’s now an eery quiet in places that used to be boisterous (school buses, school lunch/recess at schools where phones are allowed). Many of us notice the lack of eye contact and social connections in places where we used to have chats with strangers, such as while waiting in line for a coffee or passing someone on the sidewalk.

Mental: social media makes it harder to focus / learn / work – read a book, solve a difficult problem

Emotional: social media/screen time causing increased depression, anxiety

Physical: screen time linked to less sleep, less physical activity, more obesity

Social: isolation/loneliness, less practice with social skills leading to more relational challenges, in new/awkward situations, people all retreat to their phones, lessening the chance of connection

Spiritual: Reduced ability to meditate/pray when attention fragmented

Spending time with friends

Doing outdoor activites

Participating in hobbies we enjoy / make us feel good

The good news is that experimental studies show that reducing screen time leads to increased happiness and focus within weeks. That’s where camp comes in.

Gold Arrow Camp offers a unique experience – to be in a community and among people who are collectively unplugged. Time unplugged at camp gives campers and staff the unique opportunity to experience how good they feel when they’re not stuck in the addictive cycle of phone-use caused by apps that use manipulative algorithms to keep their attention. 

At camp, we spend time that was once spent on screens on other things that improve well-being, including:

Building Social Connections

More face-to-face time in real-life relationships gives campers the opportunity to form deeper connections (REALationships) with the people they are with. They experience being present with people who are focused and attentive to them, not distracted by phones. Meals, campfires, walking time, and hang-out time are all opportunities for face-to-face connection.

Getting Great Sleep

We prioritize getting good sleep at GAC with our campers getting a minimum of 9 hours of in-bed time (our oldest campers lights out is 10pm and wake up time is around 7am). Not having screens around allows for great sleep.

Discovering New Skills & Hobbies

In addition to learning and doing many fun recreational outdoor activities, campers learn card games, read, journal, play guitar, make friendship bracelets or other crafts, and make some new best friends…The opportunities for growth and discovery are endless when we’re not distracted by screens! Campers experience improved focus and productivity and the ability to be present and get fully engaged with what they are doing in the moment.

Books:

Happy Campers: 9 Summer Camp Secrets for Raising Kids Who Become Thriving Adults, Audrey Monke

iGen: Why Today’s Super-Connected Kids Are Growing Up Less Rebellious, More Tolerant, Less Happy — and Completely Unprepared for Adulthood, Jean Twenge

The Anxious Generation, Jonathan Haidt

TED Talks:

iGen: The Smartphone Generation | Jean Twenge | TEDxLagunaBlancaSchool

Are Smartphones Ruining Childhood? | Jonathan Haidt | TED

Other:

Why We Need to Unplug to Connect with Our Families

Surgeon general warning

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