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2024-11-11

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Why kids need to take more risks: science reveals the benefits of wild, free play (www.nature.com)

submitted 2 weeks ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

38 comments fedilink hide all child comments

cross-posted from: https://feddit.dk/post/9969468

From the article:

Risky play is associated with greater resilience, self-confidence, problem-solving and social skills such as cooperation, negotiation and empathy, according to studies by Sandseter and others. When a study in Leuven, Belgium, gave four- and six-year-olds just two hours a week of opportunities for risky play over the course of three months, their risk-assessment skills improved compared with those of children in a control group2. In this study, the risky play took place at school, in a gym class and in the classroom.

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[–] [email protected] 15 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (11 children)

Between the school system, parents and social media, GenZ is the wussiest, lock stepping, conformist, risk-adverse generation of all time.

"Gosh! What if I get in trouble?"

"Heavens me! What if I'm criticized on social media?"

"What if I'm told no?!"

Fuck me, asked one of my best friends (22) to do a thing with me. "What if we get in trouble?" "Uh, worst possible case? Someone says 'Stop that.'" Like being told "no" might involve cops.

There was an eye-opening reddit post about the whole thing. 12-years on reddit, that post still sticks with me. Read it. It's all honest discussion. (Yes, it starts about social skills, read on, you'll see what I'm getting at.)

TWO college professors chimed in saying their students would sit in the dark before class because no one had the guts to turn the lights on. "Uh, we didn't want to stand out or get in trouble."

You weren't allowed to take risks. Y'all have had the world stolen from you in 1,000 ways, ways you'll never know about.

EDIT: Reading those comments again right now. I'm 54, but my kids are 10 and 12, I weep for the youth. You've been fucked and think it's just normal life.

[–] C126 7 points 1 week ago (2 children)

i'm not going to reddit, just copy it for us.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (1 children)

College professor here: we've all seen a major decline in social skills over the last 4+ years, rather sudden and precipitous, so clearly not just the "normal" changes we'd been seeing over the previous two decades. Loss of basic functionality is the most glaring, like students who simply cannot bring themselves to talk to a professor face-to-face, or speak in class, or make a phone call, or make a decision about their own education, etc. etc.

The most glaring last fall was an entire class of mine that would arrive early and sit in the dark...despite my explaining how to turn on the lights (i.e. the wall switch by the door). When pressed they collectively said they were "afraid they'd get in trouble" for turning on the lights (despite my telling them to do so) and were afraid to "do anything that would draw attention to them" like being the one person to turned on the lights. So next month with my next group of freshmen we're going to have a talk about basic life skills on day one, starting with turning on the classroom lights when they arrive.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

Tbf, the kids aren't wrong here, some "authority" needs you to walk on eggshells like this or else they'll authoritize all over you like they've been waiting for some idiot to stick out their necks and do something innocuous they deem a crime just so they can lop your head off.

I got in trouble for laughing at work on wednesday, boss said he heard us across the warehouse, even though that's because we were all at our desks working while talking a little loud so as to hear each other from our desks over the din of the air compressor. Evidentially "no other departments are like that" except that they are, about 15min later a similar cacophony arose from shipping, but what do I know I'm just out on the floor more often than that manager who is always too busy sucking up to his boss in the head office.

So yeah I'm not doing a goddamn thing beyond my "duties." If my job wants people to do that they need to treat us like humans, nit get mad over every little thing. The problem isn't the kids walking on eggshells after the abuse they endure, the problem is those in power abuse their authority in ways that make the kids walk on eggshells. And it is much the same mechanisms at work here as an emotionally abusive partner, btw, and produces similar results.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 week ago (1 children)

You reminded me I wanted a PDF so I never lose it.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1q4wY8zPmSHK6Vx4JhfZ53E8t9JXDiO4b/view?usp=sharing

[–] C126 1 points 1 week ago

Is this a virus?

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