The California Partners Project is engaged in a statewide listening tour with California mothers, parents, and caregivers to understand how parents are navigating the integration of technology and devices into most aspects of their children’s lives. A mom in Northern CA shared her concern that “socially we noticed with the older kids, if they stayed online too long, they didn't even know how to hold a five-minute conversation.” A mom in Southern CA shared that her family is trying “to replace the technology and bring my son back into human connection.” Parents have noticed that their children’s social skills are lagging. Social emotional skills and social norms have been upended due to the pandemic.They express concern about how to boost their children’s social-emotional skills as in-person social interactions increase. Open-ended questions facilitate authentic conversation. Consider whether your children know how to introduce themselves to others and how this simple act can build community and connection. Social skills can help kids achieve what they need in terms of friendships, family relationships and school partnerships.

In its second year, CPP doubled down on this vision of partnership. Our gender equity work continued focus on producing hard data tracking of the success of California’s first-in-the-nation law promoting women on public company boards and gave women of color a platform to highlight their expertise. We added an Advisory Council on Child Wellbeing to our team, including six Youth Ambassadors, each a leader in her own right. We then introduced an academic team to support our Youth Ambassadors as they set out to articulate what their generation needs from the tech industry.

​​The California Partners Project is engaged in a statewide listening tour with mothers, parents, and caregivers to understand how they are navigating the integration of technology and devices into most aspects of their children’s lives. A mom in Northern California shared her concern that "a lot of kids measure their importance based on the number of followers or likes they get” on their social media accounts. “They are measuring their success based on the number of followers they have.” This mom explains that she tells her kids “Your social media presence does not define you and there is more to you than just you behind the screen.” Social comparison occurs when an individual determines their self-worth by judging oneself against others. It can be exacerbated through social media; today’s youth find connection and meaning through the likes and comments built into social media. According to UCSF Professor of Pediatrics Dr. Jason Nagata, “More time on social media can lead to more comparisons to peers. This may also lead to exposure to unattainable body ideals and higher dissatisfaction with their own bodies. Social media use is linked to higher risk of developing eating disorders.” While social media can be a source of connection, Dr. Suniya Luthar has conducted research showing online social comparison is a risk factor, over and above many others, for depression and anxiety in teens. (Adversity and Resilience Sci 1, 135-147 2020)