Problematic smartphone use
Problematic smartphone use is psychological or behavioral dependence on cell phones. It is closely related to other forms of digital media overuse such as social media addiction or internet addiction disorder.
Commonly known as "smartphone addiction", the term "problematic smartphone use" was proposed by researchers to describe similar behaviors presenting without evidence of addiction.
Problematic use can include preoccupation with mobile communication, excessive money or time spent on mobile phones, and use of mobile phones in socially or physically inappropriate situations, such as driving an automobile. Increased use can also lead to adverse effects on relationships, degraded mental or physical health, and increased anxiety when separated from a mobile phone or sufficient signal. At the same time, smartphones also play a positive role in modern life by enhancing communication, supporting task management, and providing tools such as portable navigation systems.
History and terminology
Forms of technology addiction have been considered as diagnoses since the mid 1990s. In current research on the adverse consequences of technology overuse, "mobile phone overuse" has been proposed as a subset of forms of "digital addiction" or "digital dependence", reflecting increasing trends of compulsive behavior among users of technological devices. Researchers have termed these behaviors "smartphone addiction" and "problematic smartphone use", as well as referring to use of non-smartphone mobile devices.Excessive use of technological devices may affect developmental, social, mental, and physical well-being and result in symptoms similar to behavioral addictions, but the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders has not formally codified problematic smartphone use as a diagnosis. Widely accepted recommendations for the treatment of problematic use behaviors do not yet exist in part due to the lack of well-established evidence or expert consensus, the differing emphasis of the classification manuals, and difficulties using animal models for analysis.
While published studies have shown associations between digital media use and mental health symptoms or diagnoses, causality has not been established, with nuances and caveats of researchers often misunderstood by the general public, or misrepresented by the media. A systematic review of reviews published in 2019 concluded that evidence—although of mainly low to moderate quality—showed an association between screen time and poorer psychological health, including symptoms such as inattention, hyperactivity, low self esteem, and behavioral issues in childhood and adolescence. Several studies have shown that females are more likely to overuse social media, while males are more likely to overuse video games. This has led experts to suggest that digital media overuse may not be a unified phenomenon, with some calling to delineate proposed disorders based on individual online activity.
Due to the lack of recognition and consensus on the concepts, diagnoses and treatments are difficult to standardize or recommend.
Prevalence
The stated prevalence of forms of technology overuse have varied considerably, with marked variations by nation and increases over time.Prevalence of mobile phone overuse depends largely on definitions and the scales used to quantify behaviors. Two main scales are in use, in both adult and adolescent populations: the 20-item self-reported Problematic Use of Mobile Phones scale, and the Mobile Phone Problem Use Scale. There are variations in the age, gender, and percentage of the population affected problematically according to the scales and definitions used. The prevalence among British adolescents aged 11–14 was 10%. In India, addiction is stated at 39-44% for this age group. Under different diagnostic criteria, the estimated prevalence ranges from 0 to 38%, with self-attribution of mobile phone addiction exceeding the prevalence estimated in the studies themselves. The prevalence of the related problem of internet addiction was 4.9-10.7% in South Korea, and is now regarded as a serious public health issue. A questionnaire survey in South Korea also found that these teenagers are twice as likely to admit that they are "mobile phone addicted" as adults. They also believe smartphone communication has become an important part of their lives and an important way to maintain social relationships. Additional scales used to measure smartphone addictions are the Korean Scale for Internet Addiction for adolescents, the Smartphone Addiction Scale, and the Smartphone Addiction Proneness Scale. These implicit tests were validated in a 2018 study as means of measuring smartphone and internet addiction in children and adolescents.
Behaviors associated with mobile-phone addiction differ between genders. Older people are less likely to develop addictive mobile phone behavior because of different social usage, stress, and greater self-regulation. A 2019 study by British media regulator Ofcom showed that 50% of 10-year-olds in the UK owned a smartphone.
A study conducted by researchers at the University of Toronto Mississauga surveyed over 50,000 participants across 195 countries to examine global patterns of smartphone usage. The findings indicated consistent trends in problematic smartphone use, particularly among younger women. The study suggests that social and cultural factors, such as the emphasis on social connectivity and the role of smartphones in daily life, contribute to these patterns. Additionally, the research highlights the importance of considering the context of smartphone use when assessing its impact on individuals' well-being. For instance, extensive use for professional purposes may not be problematic, whereas usage that interferes with sleep or daily activities might indicate issues.
Negative effects
Overuse of mobile phones may be associated with negative outcomes on mental and physical health, in addition to having an impact on how users interact socially.Social
Some people are using online communication to replace face-to-face conversations. Clinical psychologist Lisa Merlo says, "Some patients pretend to talk on the phone or fiddle with apps to avoid eye contact or other interactions at a party." Furthermore, a 2011 study showed- 70% check their phones in the morning within an hour of getting up;
- 56% check their phones before going to bed;
- 48% check their phones over the weekend;
- 51% constantly check their phones during vacation; and
- 44% reported they would feel very anxious and irritable if they did not interact with their phones within a week.
According to Elliot Berkman, a psychology professor at the University of Oregon, the constant checking of phones is caused by reward learning and the fear of missing out. Berkman explains that, "Habits are a product of reinforcement learning, one of our brain's most ancient and reliable systems," and therefore people tend to develop habits of completing behaviors that have rewarded them in the past. For many, using a mobile phone has been enjoyable in the past, due to the reinforcing positive feelings when receiving and responding to a notification. Berkman also iterates that people often check their smartphones to relieve the social pressure they place upon themselves to never miss out on exciting things. As Berkman says, "Smartphones can be an escape from boredom because they are a window into many worlds other than the one right in front of you, helping us feel included and involved in society." When people do not check their mobile phones, they are unable to satisfy this "check habit" or suppress the fear of missing out, leading to anxiety and irritability. According to Timothy Oblad, increased smartphone use among adolescents has been linked to negative outcomes such as depression and self-harm and found that excessive use correlates with these issues, particularly among teens aged 13–15.
Other implications of cell phone use in mental health symptoms were observed by Thomée et al. in Sweden. This study found a relationship between report of mental health and perceived stress of participants' accessibility, which is defined as the possibility to be disturbed at any moment of day or night.
Critics of smartphones have especially raised concerns about effects on youth, in particular isolation, and its effects on social and emotional development. The presence of smartphones in everyday life may affect social interactions amongst teenagers. Present evidence shows that smartphones are not only decreasing face-to-face social interactions between teenagers, but are also making them less likely to talk to adults. In a study produced by Doctor Lelia Green at Edith Cowan University, researchers discovered that "the growing use of mobile technologies implies a progressive digital colonization of children's lives, reshaping the interactions of younger adults." Face-to-face interactions have decreased because of the increase in shared interactions via social media, mobile video sharing, and digital instant messaging. Critics believe the primary concern in this shift is that the youth are inhibiting themselves of constructive social interactions and emotional practices.
Social media has changed how people communicate with each other. Nowadays, how we interact and process information is completely different. A huge worry that people have is that kids' attention spans are much shorter, and they believe that it's because of social media. Over 90 percent of teachers have had concerns about students' mental health over the past few years. The access to social media and communication on multiple devices has screen time taking over. A survey was conducted by the National Education Association of nearly 3,000 members working in school classrooms from kindergarten through twelfth grade. The survey shows that the top contributing factors to concerns of mental health include personal device use and social media. The survey also highlighted that teachers are increasingly worried about how social media affects students' ability to focus, communicate, and build interpersonal skills. Many educators feel that excessive screen time and dependency on personal devices are not only contributing to behavioral challenges but also classroom disruptions. They point out that constant online interactions can lead to heightened anxiety and lowered resilience, as students struggle to balance their digital and real-world experiences. Constant use of one's phone has been shown to cause people to even create their own interruptions by constantly checking things like text messages and emails, even to the degree of hearing their phone or feeling it vibrate when there have been no alerts made in reality. By constantly seeing the glamorous lives that people on the internet perpetuate of themselves, more viewers of such media are led to be less happy with their lives, have increased feelings of jealousy, and also have lowered self-esteem. Overall, the pervasive influence of social media and screen time is deeply impacting students' mental health, attention spans, and ability to form meaningful, real-world connections, leaving educators increasingly concerned about the long-term effects on both learning and well-being.
Other studies show a positive social aspect from smartphone use. A study on whether smartphone presence changed responses to social stress involved 148 males and females around the age of 20. Exposed to a social-exclusion stressor and measuring levels of alpha-amylase stress hormone, the results showed higher levels of sAA and cortisol in the group without no phone access, suggested that the presence of a smartphone, even if it's not being used, can decrease the negative effects of social exclusion.