This article was originally published on English
Two new studies have found that problematic smartphone use among adolescents is linked to anxiety, depression and insomnia.
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Teenagers who report problematic smartphone use are more likely to suffer from anxiety, depression or insomnia, two new studies in British schools show.
Researchers at King’s College London collected responses from 657 teenagers aged 16 to 18 in one study and 69 children aged 13 to 16 in the other study over a period of four weeks.
About 18.7 percent of 16- to 18-year-olds and about 14.5 percent of 13- to 16-year-olds said they had problematic smartphone use, according to the researchers.
“Problematic smartphone use is a construct that the researchers came up with to describe a pattern of smartphone use that has some similarities to the way other people talk about their behavioral addictions, such as problem gambling,” study co-author Dr. Nicola Kalk of King’s College London told the Associated Press.
“The common features are loss of control over usage; the predominance of the smartphone in their life so that they spend their time on the smartphone and neglect other meaningful activities or sleep; continuing to use it despite being aware of the disadvantages; experiencing a real sense of dysphoria or stress when they cannot be near their smartphone or cannot use their smartphone; and spending more and more time on their smartphone to get the same reward,” she added.
A study published in the journal Acta Paediatrica found that 16- to 18-year-olds who reported problematic smartphone use were twice as likely to suffer from anxiety and three times as likely to suffer from depression as those who did not report problematic use.
The other study, published in the journal BMJ Mental Health found that nearly half of adolescents ages 13 to 16 with problematic smartphone use reported anxiety and more than half reported symptoms of depression.
“We found that problematic smartphone use is associated with anxiety, depression and insomnia in two different age groups of adolescents, using two different research methods,” said Ben Carter, Professor of Medical Statistics at King’s College London and lead author of both studies, in a statement.
“By revealing the link between problematic smartphone use and poorer mental health and showing that young people are aware of this problem and are making efforts to manage their use, these studies highlight the need for evidence-based interventions to help adolescents struggling with difficult behaviors related to their smartphone use,” he added.
A distinction was made between problematic use and screen time.
The number of minutes spent on the phone was not associated with anxiety or depression in older adolescents, but was associated with insomnia.
Although it is a less serious form of addiction, the study authors say there may one day be enough evidence for doctors to recognize problematic smartphone use as such.
To curb smartphone use among teenagers, Kalk recommends that parents sit down with their children to discuss the issue and develop healthy usage habits at home.
Both studies found that teens want to spend less time on their phones and most reported trying to limit their use.
“The good news is that young people are thinking about their use and are insightful – they understand that smartphones have both disadvantages and advantages,” says Kalk.
