Psychologist Peter Gray Challenges Jonathan Haidt's Smartphone Thesis in New Book
In September 2026, Peter Gray's book *Restoring Childhood* will be published by Penguin Random House, following a $500,000 advance. Gray contends that the decline in youth mental health is linked to Common Core standards rather than smartphones. He cites a dramatic increase in school stress among teens, which rose from 43% in 2009 to 83% in 2013, and claims that teen suicide rates fell by approximately 40% from 1990 to 2010. Gray, who co-founded Let Grow with Jonathan Haidt in 2017 and departed the board in 2023, also argues that age restrictions on social media violate human rights.
Key facts
- Peter Gray's Restoring Childhood publishes September 2026 by Penguin Random House.
- Gray received a $500,000 advance for the book.
- Gray argues Common Core standards, not smartphones, caused youth mental health decline.
- APA Stress in America: school stress in teens rose from 43% (2009) to 83% (2013).
- Teen suicide rates dropped ~40% from 1990 to 2010, per Gray.
- Gray co-founded Let Grow with Jonathan Haidt in 2017; Gray left the board in 2023.
- Haidt's The Anxious Generation spent over two years on NYT bestseller list.
- Gray calls social media age minimums a violation of human rights.
Entities
Artists
- Peter Gray
- Jonathan Haidt
- Greg Lukianoff
- Steven Pinker
- David Sloan Wilson
- Candice Odgers
- Christopher Ferguson
- Pete Etchells
Institutions
- Boston College
- Let Grow
- Penguin Random House
- The Atlantic
- New York Times
- Pew Research Center
- American Psychological Association
- National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
- Bath Spa University
- UC Irvine
- Stetson University
- Binghamton University
- Rockefeller University
Locations
- Minneapolis
- Hill City
- Minnesota
- Framingham
- Massachusetts
- Millis
- United States
- Sweden
- England
- North America
- Europe