Two new studies found that problematic smartphone use in teens is linked to anxiety, depression, and insomnia.
ADVERTISEMENTTeenagers reporting problematic smartphone use are more likely to have anxiety, depression, or insomnia, according to two new studies at UK schools.
Researchers at King’s College London gathered the responses of 657 teenagers aged between 16 and 18 in one study and 69 children aged between 13 and 16 over four weeks in the other.
Some 18.7 per cent of 16-to-18-year-olds and around 14.5 per cent of 13-to-16-year-olds self-reported problematic smartphone use, the researchers said.
"Problematic smartphone use is a construct that researchers have come up with to describe a pattern of smartphone use, which shares some similarities to the way other people would talk about their behavioural addictions for things like problem gambling," the study's co-author, Dr Nicola Kalk from King’s College London told the Associated Press.
"So the features it shares are subject to loss of control over use, primacy of the smartphone in their life so that they're spending time on their smartphone in preference to other meaningful activities or sleep, that they continue doing this despite an awareness of the downsides, that they feel a real sense of dysphoria or distress if they can't be near their smartphone or use their smartphone, and are finding that they're spending increasing amounts of time on their smartphone to get the same reward," she added.
One study, published in the journal Acta Paediatrica, found that 16-to-18-year-olds reporting problematic smartphone use were twice as likely to experience anxiety and three times as likely to suffer from depression, compared to those who did not have problematic use.
The other study, published in the journal BMJ Mental Health, found that nearly half of teens aged 13 to 16 with problematic use reported anxiety and more than half reported symptoms of depression.
"We found that problematic smartphone use was linked with anxiety, depression, and insomnia across two separate adolescent age groups using two different research methods," Ben Carter, a professor of medical statistics at King’s College London and first author of both studies, said in a statement.
“By revealing the link between problematic use of smartphones and poorer mental health, and demonstrating that young people are aware of this problem and are eager to manage their use, these studies highlight the need for evidence-based interventions to help adolescents struggling with difficult behaviours around their smartphone use,” he added.
There was a distinction between problematic use and screen time.
The number of minutes spent on a phone was not associated with anxiety or depression in older teenagers but was associated with insomnia.
Although it's less severe than addiction, the authors say there could one day be enough evidence for doctors to recognise problematic smartphone use as one.
As for how to curb teen smartphone use, Kalk recommends parents sit down with their children to discuss the issue and develop healthy usage habits in the home together.
Both studies found that teenagers want to spend less time on their phones and most reported having tried to limit their use.
“The good news is that adolescents are reflective and insightful about their use – they understand that smartphones bring downsides as well as benefits,” Kalk said.
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