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If you are a teenager today, you hang out with friends far less in-person—up to an hour less per day—than the previous generation.[1] You’ve heard less in-person laughter, fewer in-person jokes; seen fewer in-person tears, but also had far fewer occasions to touch—far fewer kisses and hugs than any teenager since researchers started recording these things. Far fewer in-person opportunities to make a mistake, feel bad, apologize, grow. Your parents observe every aspect of your life unfolding on social media and—if anything happens to you or your friends—they know about it as soon as you do. There is no private kids’ world of low stakes: your parents, plugged in always to WhatsApp, know about every kid caught vaping on the school overnight, hours after it occurs. They guide you through every squabble, every conflict with a teacher, every misunderstanding with a friend. By default, your parents are your best friends.
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