Resources
Recommended books, trusted organizations, and the full reference list from our guide — for anyone who wants to go deeper.
Books
Dopamine Nation
Finding Balance in the Age of Indulgence
Dr. Anna Lembke · 2021
Chief of the Stanford Addiction Medicine Dual Diagnosis Clinic. Explains the neuroscience of addiction and how digital stimuli — including pornography — rewire the brain's pleasure-pain balance. Essential reading for understanding why these behaviors are so hard to stop.
Why we recommend it: The neuroscience of why these behaviors are hard to stop.
The Anxious Generation
How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness
Jonathan Haidt · 2024
NYU professor of Ethical Leadership. Presents the research behind the teen mental health crisis and its connection to smartphones and social media. Proposes four practical norms: no smartphones before high school, no social media before 16, phone-free schools, and more real-world free play.
Why we recommend it: The definitive case for delaying smartphones and social media.
The Coddling of the American Mind
Jonathan Haidt & Greg Lukianoff · 2018
The precursor to The Anxious Generation, exploring how overprotection and a culture of safetyism are weakening young people's resilience and contributing to the mental health crisis.
Why we recommend it: Broader context on protecting kids without overprotecting them.
Good Pictures Bad Pictures
Porn-Proofing Today's Young Kids
Kristen Jenson · 2016
An age-appropriate read-aloud book for parents and young children (ages 6+) that explains pornography's effect on the brain in simple, child-friendly terms. A great conversation starter for families who aren't sure how to begin.
Why we recommend it: The best first conversation tool for young children.
Websites & Organizations
Fight the New Drug
fightthenewdrug.org ↗A non-religious, science-based nonprofit that raises awareness about the harmful effects of pornography on individuals, relationships, and society. Excellent shareable content for teens and young adults.
Protect Young Eyes
protectyoungeyes.com ↗Practical guides and app reviews for parents. Covers device setup, parental controls, and app-by-app breakdowns of risks. Regularly updated and extremely actionable.
Covenant Eyes
covenanteyes.com ↗Accountability and screen monitoring software designed for families and individuals. Uses AI-based screen scanning rather than just URL filtering. Popular in churches and small groups.
Thorn
thorn.org ↗A nonprofit that builds technology to defend children from sexual abuse and exploitation. Their research on deepfake nudes, sextortion, and online child safety is among the most rigorous available. Founded by Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore.
Common Sense Media
commonsensemedia.org ↗Independent reviews and ratings of movies, TV, apps, and games for families. Their research reports on teens and technology are widely cited and trustworthy.
The Anxious Generation Movement
anxiousgeneration.com ↗The organization born out of Jonathan Haidt's book. Provides resources for parents and educators seeking to roll back the phone-based childhood. Includes the "Smartphone Free Childhood" parent pledge.
NCMEC
missingkids.org ↗National Center for Missing & Exploited Children. Operates the CyberTipline for reporting online child exploitation. Their NetSmartz program provides free online safety resources for families and schools.
Internet Safety 101
internetsafety101.org ↗Comprehensive statistics and educational resources on internet safety, pornography, predators, and cyberbullying. Great for churches and parent groups.
Sources & References
All 21 sources cited in our guide, organized by topic.
Pornography: Exposure, Addiction & Marriage Impact
- Common Sense Media. "Teens and Pornography." Benenson Strategy Group survey of 1,358 teens ages 13–17, January 2023. commonsensemedia.org
- Institute for Family Studies. "What Happens When Children Are Exposed to Pornography?" Coca, G. & Wikle, J., 2024. ifstudies.org
- American College of Pediatricians. "The Impact of Pornography on Children." Updated August 2024. acpeds.org
- Perry, S. & Schleifer, C. "Till Porn Do Us Part? A Longitudinal Examination of Pornography Use and Divorce." Journal of Sex Research, 2017. (PubMed ID: 28497988)
- Perry, S. "Pornography Use and Marital Separation: Evidence from Two-Wave Panel Data." Published 2017. (PubMed ID: 28936726)
- Institute for Family Studies. "Five Reasons Porn Is Bad for Your Marriage." Willoughby, B. & Carroll, J. ifstudies.org
- NPR. "Researchers Explore Pornography's Effect on Long-Term Relationships." October 9, 2017. npr.org
- Internet Safety 101. "Pornography Statistics." Updated January 2026. internetsafety101.org
Artificial Intelligence: Deepfakes, Chatbots & Youth Safety
- Thorn. "Deepfake Nudes & Young People." March 2025. Survey of 1,200 young people ages 13–20. thorn.org
- National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC). AI-generated CSAM reports rose from 4,700 in 2023 to 440,000 in the first six months of 2025. missingkids.org
- National Education Association. "AI Deepfakes: A Disturbing Trend in School Cyberbullying." 2025. nea.org
- Education Week. "More Teens Than You Think Have Been Deepfake Targets." March 3, 2025. edweek.org
- Center for Democracy and Technology. 2024 survey: 15% of students reported knowing about AI-generated explicit images of a classmate. cdt.org
- CNN. "Character.AI and Google Agree to Settle Lawsuits Over Teen Mental Health Harms and Suicides." January 7, 2026. cnn.com
- CBS News. "AI Company, Google Settle Lawsuit Over Florida Teen's Suicide Linked to Character.AI Chatbot." January 8, 2026. cbsnews.com
- The Take It Down Act. Federal law signed May 2025, criminalizing distribution of nonconsensual intimate images including deepfakes.
Social Media: Youth Mental Health & Online Predators
- U.S. Surgeon General. "Social Media and Youth Mental Health: The U.S. Surgeon General's Advisory." May 2023. hhs.gov/surgeongeneral
- NPR. "U.S. Surgeon General Says Social Media Can Put Young People in Danger." May 23, 2023. npr.org
- Thorn. "Sexual Extortion & Young People." June 2025. 1 in 5 teens reported experience with sextortion; 1 in 7 victims driven to self-harm. thorn.org
- Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP). Summary of Surgeon General's Advisory on Social Media and Youth Mental Health. ojjdp.ojp.gov
- American Psychological Association. "Health Advisory on Social Media Use in Adolescence." 2023. apa.org
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