Michel Desmurget

Researchers · INSERM

INSERM neuroscience research director whose "Screen Damage" became a bestseller questioning heavy screen use in children.

Michel Desmurget is a neuroscience research director at INSERM, France's national institute for health and medical research. His book — published in French as "La Fabrique du crétin digital" and in English as "Screen Damage" (2022) — became a bestseller in France, arguing that heavy recreational screen use in children is associated with slower cognitive and language development. Desmurget's research adds a French, INSERM-backed voice to the international body of work on screens and child development, and his book has been widely discussed among European researchers, educators, and policymakers weighing limits on children's screen use.