Anna Rotkirch

In recent years demographers worldwide have raised alarms over a rapid decline in birth rates across almost every region. The Financial Times has published a piece that examines the growing demographic crisis, and it is not merely the worsening economic climate and unaffordable housing that the article points to. For reasons that are not entirely clear, the article draws a continuous line through its analysis, suggesting that smartphones and social media lie at the heart of the problem. It notes that “up to half of the decline in births in these countries since the 1990s can be explained by a reduction in the number of homeowners and a rise in the proportion of young people living with their parents”, guiding readers toward an unexpected conclusion: “the threat to population numbers is in your pocket”. The authors argue that the culprit is not soaring property prices worldwide, but “digital devices and platforms that play a disproportionately large role in the lives of young people everywhere”. Citing external research, they claim that “the number of births fell most sharply and first in regions where high-speed mobile connectivity appeared earliest. Smartphones changed how young people spend time with one another, dramatically cutting face-to-face interaction and leading to a steep drop in fertility”. An accompanying diagram illustrates the fall in the birth-rate coefficient before and after smartphones entered the picture: All these turning points coincided with the mass spread of smartphones on local markets - judging by the volume of Google searches for mobile apps. In different countries, birth rates fell sharply after smartphones arrived, regardless of previous trends. The younger the age group, the steeper the decline - a mirror image of smartphone usage patterns. Among couples, sexual dysfunction is more common in young people who use social media most actively. She asserts that the time spent on social platforms, together with the values and lifestyle they promote, also make it harder for young people to form serious relationships. Examples are drawn from South Asian nations where women’s internet access is often more limited, resulting in fewer people remaining single. One possible reason is that social networks amplify and cement reactions to issues such as housing problems or changing economic circumstances for men and women, turning long-standing processes into sudden waves, heightening economic anxiety and creating a persistent feeling of insecurity and worry that can act as a preventive measure. In other words, the authors contend that the issue is not that young people face economic hardship, but that they have started to notice it. Average number of children born per woman in different world regions The Financial Times concludes with a sub-heading “Time to find a solution”, followed by recommendations on how to counter the trends taking hold among youth. Researchers stress the need to “change our digital habits - whether through cultural shifts or government regulation”. Considering that the outlet and the article (behind a paywall) are not aimed at a mass audience, the writers appear to be nudging the world toward even tighter controls on young people’s access to the internet, social networks and, of course, smartphones. Fortunately, a number of commenters spotted this underlying message and began to criticise the piece for it, although many of those comments were ultimately removed by moderators. Based on: www.ft.com

Anna Rotkirch

Smartphones blamed for plummeting birth rates