Impact of Smartphones on Adolescents: The Problem of Addiction

Introduction

“Mobile phone addiction” or “problems of mobile phone use” have all been used to describe more or less the same phenomenon, that is, individuals engrossed in their Smartphone use to the extent that they neglect other areas of life. The most commonly used terms to describe this kind of addiction are “mobile phone addiction” and, recently, “Smartphone addiction”.

Mobile phone usage is so strongly integrated into young people‘s behavior that symptoms of behavioral addiction, such as cell phone usage interrupting their day-to-day activities. To analyze the impact of smartphones, this essay will try to measure smart phone addiction among adolescents, and find out the emotional and physical problems resulting from smartphone addiction. People are increasingly using mobile phones rather than the fixed telephones. The cell phone today is a lifeline for many. It is estimated that around 4.5 billion people use the cell phone worldwide. And it comes as no surprise that a huge chunk of this quantity consists of the youth. The cell phone is more of a necessity for them than a luxury.

Signs and Symptoms of Smartphone Addiction

Some major signs and symptoms of Smartphone addiction include: Tolerance, Withdrawal, Failed attempts to cut back on Smartphone use, Loses track of time when using mobile phone, Uses a cell phone in order to deal with unwanted emotions, Text neck, Digital eye strain.

Among our technological gadgets smartphones play the most important role, a new generation devices offer other functions beyond calling (internet availability, computer games, music player, camera functions etc.) In every day’s can be experienced that youth spend more and more time with their smartphones and despite the actuality of this issue there are no studies on the exce sive Smartphone usage in Hungary and we can find only a few international studies.

Smartphone are popular technological devices, capable of processing more information than other mobile phones and having many properties including internet access, multimedia and navigation, in addition, to use for communication. The number of estimated Smartphone users in the world were more than 1.08 billion in early 2012, and the use of smartphones has increased rapidly

The use of smartphones might result in Smartphone addiction which is similar to many aspects of internet and cell phone addiction. It has been reported that the rate of Smartphone addiction is 8.40%.

The impact of smartphone addiction

Impacts in the Physical Health

There is some evidence supporting the claim that excessive mobile phone use can cause or worsen health problems. Germs are everywhere, and considering the number of times people interact with their cell phone under different circumstances and places, germs are very likely to transfer from one place to another. Research from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine at Queen Mary in 2011 indicated that one in six cell phones is contaminated with fecal matter. Under further inspection, some of the phones with the fecal matter were also harboring lethal bacteria such as E. coli, which can result in fever, vomiting, and diarrhea.

Impacts in the Psychological Health

There are concerns that some mobile phone users incur considerable debt, and that mobile phones are being used to violate privacy and harass others. In particular, there is increasing evidence that mobile phones are being used as a tool by children to bully other children.

There is a large amount of research on mobile phone use, and its positive and negative influence on the human’s psychological mind and social communication. Referring to the possible negative outcomes of mobile phone use, users may encounter stress, sleep disturbances and symptoms of depression, especially in young adults.

• • Increasing loneliness and depression:

While it may seem that losing yourself online will temporarily make feelings such as loneliness, depression, and boredom evaporate into thin air, it can actually make you feel even worse. A 2014 study found a correlation between high social media usage and depression and anxiety. Users, especially teens, tend to compare themselves unfavorably with their peers on social media, promoting feelings of loneliness and depression.

• • Feeling anxiety:

One researcher found that the mere presence of a phone in a work place tends to make people more anxious and perform poorly on given tasks. The heavier the phone user, the greater the anxiety experienced.

• • Increasing stress:

Using a Smartphone for work often means work bleeds into your home and personal life. You feel the pressure to always be on, never out of touch from work. This need to continually check and respond to email can contribute to higher stress levels and even burnout. Exacerbating attention deficit disorders.

• • Disturbing your sleep:

Excessive Smartphone use can disrupt your sleep, which can have a serious impact on your overall mental health. It can impact your memory, affect your ability to think clearly, and reduce your cognitive and learning skills.

• • Encouraging self-absorption:

A UK study found that people who spend a lot of time on social media are more likely to display negative personality traits such as narcissism. Snapping endless selfies, posting all your thoughts or details about your life can create an unhealthy self-centeredness, distancing you from real-life relationships and making it harder to cope with stress.

Impacts in the Social Health

There is an enormous impact of the mobile phone on contemporary society from a social scientific perspective. 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.”

In a survey made by Gazelle, “More than 25% of respondents reported that they ‘almost always’ use their Smartphone while in a social setting such as during a meal or during a party. In addition, 58% said they use it ‘usually’ or ‘occasionally’ during these settings.” Furthermore

• 70% check their phones in the morning within just one 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
• 44% reported they would feel very anxious and irritable if they did not interact with their phones within a week.

This change on the conversation style from face-to-face to text based conversation has also been observed by Sherry Turkle. Her work cites connectivity as an important trigger of social behavior change regarding communication; therefore this adaptation of communicating would not be caused only by the cell phone as a device itself.

Conclusion

Every new piece of technology has the potential to be both a boon and a curse. Mobile phones, while they have brought people closer and have enabled even the most remote person to access the internet and to engage in educational, recreational and social activities; unrestricted use has the potential to cause dependence. People with signs of dependence on or addiction to mobile phones or smart phones display an array of Physical Health, Mental Health and Social Health issues. They show signs of compromised functioning either in the presence of or due to the absence of the mobile devices – a clear indicator that the technology is being abused. As psychologists and alert citizens, it becomes our task to ensure that we do not allow ourselves to become dependent on mobile phones; as well as to help those already showing signs of addiction and dependence throw off the yolk of the device, and instead harness it to fulfill one’s potential. The researcher after the study has given a few suggestions for the adolescents how to cope with the impact of mobile phone addictionsmart phone addiction among in their life.

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