"Moral panics about “kids these days” are everywhere, but Dobud and Harper cut through the hysteria with real science and clear thinking. They show how well-intentioned interventions often backfire—and what actually helps. A must-read for anyone who cares about kids."
—Kurt Gray, Professor at Ohio State University and author of Outraged
Gain access to Kids These Days before publication, engage in free online webinars with youth mental health experts, and attend a free online VIP event with experts from the book... and many others! All we ask is for you to help us change how we think about kids these days.
An unflinching exploration of how interference, intervention, and ideology are harming youth mental health and development
The Book
Anxiety, depression, self-harm, substance use disorders, and teen suicide – despite having more counselors, educators, experts, and medications than ever before, today’s young people are suffering from a mental health epidemic. Exploring a range of factors contributing to this wicked problem – from social media, overprotection, and environmental toxins to the erosion of connection – Kids These Days clearly identifies what works for raising happy and healthy youth, and what does not.
This essential guide is an unflinching examination of the failings of the mental health industry and a call to action for adults to stand up against interference, harmful interventions, and ideologies negatively impacting our children. Therapists, parents, and researchers Will Dobud and Nevin Harper:
​
-
Engage leading voices in adolescent well-being—mental health professionals, scientists, doctors, and parenting gurus—to discover why most attempts to fix teenagers fail
​
-
Distill the last twenty years of research and clinical practice to identify the causes and potential cures for the growing youth mental health crisis
​
-
Show how social connection, mastery, gratitude, and independence promote emotional and psychological resilience in the next generation.
It’s time to stop labeling youth and recognize them as the heroes of their own stories. Whether a parent, guardian, therapist, educator, or other role model, we need to build trust and foster relationships while helping the young people in our lives negotiate the adventure of adolescence. Our kids are not broken. What really needs to change is the adults these days.
the authors
Will Dobud
Will Dobud, PhD, MSW, is a social work clinician and researcher working on innovative treatment programs integrating outdoor therapeutic experiences and an advocate for youth impacted by America’s troubled teen industry. He is co-author of Solution-Focused Practice in Outdoor Therapy and Outdoor Therapies. Will is from the Washington, DC, area.
Nevin Harper
Nevin Harper, PhD, is a Professor in the Faculty of Health at the University of Victoria and a Registered Clinical Counsellor with over 30 years of experience leading groups and individuals through transformative outdoor experiences. He is co-author of Nature-Based Therapy and Outdoor Therapies. Nevin lives on Vancouver Island, Canada.
The Research
Kids These Days is organized by three types of harms needing to be addressed to promote healthy positive child and youth development: Interference, Intervention, and Ideology.
​
Part I: Interference explores increased loneliness, loss of connection, digital interference, and the impact of environmental toxins on youth development. Part II: Intervention takes a critical look at the labeling of mental disorders, psychotherapy, the overprescription of psychiatric medications, and universal school-based programs teaching social emotional learning. Part III: Ideology shows how the dogma of safety led to an extinction of experience and how this impacts youth.
We aim to show how adults can, at first, at least notice these shockingly obvious concerns, and more importantly, to be courageous in addressing them. Not blaming kids these days, but rather listening, learning, and leading.
INTERFERENCE
INTERVENTION
IDEOLOGY
Kids These Days is about stepping up and assuming responsibility, especially when others may be struggling to do so. It’s about becoming a stabilizing force and setting an example. It’s doing or saying what others know is needed but are possibly unwilling and unprepared to. This book is about being the “adult in the room” – an idiom used figuratively to encourage us to demonstrate maturity, responsibility, and leadership in the face of unhelpful and uncooperative systems or where others are acting irresponsibly, unethically, or immaturely.
The Experts
"Don't trust the experts." That's what Dr. Gordon Neufeld told Will and Nevin. The problem? They spoke to the experts. They are positive deviants and rebels in their own right! Gordon was right. Get to know the main characters of Kids These Days.
Click the Learn More button to access more information and video content associated with each of these experts.
Resources
While writing this book, we compiled a trail of evidence to do our best as we move forward. You can download our references below to explore the sources informing our discussion. After all, one cannot write a book such as this without showing our receipts for the science. Additionally, feel free to click around this website to learn more about the experts we met with and their impactful careers.
Many of the questions we raise do not condense. They generate more unscripted questions. We encourage the curious reader to make their own decisions about the value of our exploration and its pragmatic meaning for yourself. In the end, our goal was to understand why so many young people are hurting, starved for connection, and lacking the autonomy to adventurously explore adolescence.