Graphic detail | The jury is still out

Suicide rates for girls are rising. Are smartphones to blame?

Hospitalisation rates for self-harm have increased by 140% since 2010

In 2017 jean twenge, a professor at San Diego State, wrote an essay entitled “Have smartphones destroyed a generation?” Her answer, “yes”, was provocative at the time. Now, it is a common refrain.

This article appeared in the Graphic detail section of the print edition under the headline “The jury is still out”

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