Smartphone Addiction and Negative Behaviors among High School Students

Abstract

Researchers have seen many cases in which teens have felt frustrated when internet connection was not reachable or even got anxious when their phone battery ran out. These situations have created a 21st century term, known as “nomophobia”, the fear of not being able to use your mobile device, and such fear has opened up to the issue of smartphone addiction. Victims of smartphone addiction are not only exposed to physical and mental side effects such as back pain and depression, but they are also likely to perform risky behaviors. One prime example of risk, recorded New York City, is looking at smartphones while crossing dangerous streets. Through our observational data, we observed the total cases of smartphone usage found in various public locations, and afterwards recorded each phone user’s body position, behavior type and behavior time. The results suggested that at most locations, about half of the people were seen using their smartphones. Additionally, more than 70% of these smartphone users were found using their phones in negative ways, such as staring at their phones head down, for a long period of time. The surveys revealed that at least 75% of students in each grade level experienced at least one of the signs of smartphone addiction. Our study shows that raising awareness can efficiently improve the quality of life in our community because not only will people be aware and informed of the issue, but they will also be inspired to stop their addictive phone behaviors.