Cellphone addiction harming academic performance is 'an increasingly realistic possibility'

This could either go here or in the medical forum.

Cellphone addiction harming academic performance is 'an increasingly realistic possibility'

Women college students spend an average of 10 hours a day on their cellphones and men college students spend nearly eight, with excessive use posing potential risks for academic performance, according to a Baylor University study on cellphone activity published in the Journal of Behavioral Addictions.

"That's astounding," said researcher James Roberts, Ph.D., The Ben H. Williams Professor of Marketing in Baylor's Hankamer School of Business. "As cellphone functions increase, addictions to this seemingly indispensable piece of technology become an increasingly realistic possibility."

The study notes that approximately 60 percent of college students admit they may be addicted to their cell phone, and some indicated they get agitated when it is not in sight, said Roberts, lead author of the article "The Invisible Addiction: Cellphone Activities and Addiction among Male and Female College Students."

The study -- based on an online survey of 164 college students -- examined 24 cellphone activities and found that time spent on 11 of those activities differed significantly across the sexes. Some functions -- among them Pinterest and Instagram -- are associated significantly with cellphone addiction. But others that might logically seem to be addictive -- Internet use and gaming -- were not.

General findings of the study showed that:

• Of the top activities, respondents overall reported spending the most time texting (an average of 94.6 minutes a day), followed by sending emails (48.5 minutes), checking Facebook (38.6 minutes), surfing the Internet (34.4 minutes) and listening to their iPods. (26.9 minutes).

• Men send about the same number of emails but spend less time on each. "That may suggest that they're sending shorter, more utilitarian messages than their female counterparts," Roberts said.

• Women spend more time on their cellphones. While that finding runs somewhat contrary to the traditional view that men are more invested in technology, "women may be more inclined to use cellphones for social reasons such as texting or emails to build relationships and have deeper conversations."

• The men in the study, while more occupied with using their cellphones for utilitarian or entertainment purposes, "are not immune to the allure of social media," Roberts said. They spent time visiting such social networking sites as Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Among reasons they used Twitter were to follow sports figures, catch up on the news -- "or, as one male student explained it, 'waste time,'" Roberts said.

Excessive use of cellphones poses a number of possible risks for students, he said.

It doesn't surprise me, cellphone addiction is harmful on many levels, not just in the area of academic performance.

It's crazy how many kids have cellphones these days. I didn't get my first cell phone till I was 19 & I bought it myself.

Everyone is on their phone, while they walk, while they drive, while they eat, while they are with friends. It's super annoying!! I think some places like restaurants & movie theaters, should block cell phone reception. "What if there is an emergency?" Businesses have land lines, they don't run on cell phones.

I have mixed feelings about a lot of things tech related. I'll be 32 in 6 weeks, and was the first in my middle school to have a pager at age 13, also the first to have a cell phone at age 15. I loved tech. It made sense to me that tech was going to change the world.

I had a realization in the early 2000's that we were opening pandora's box, so to speak, both biologically, and technologically. I think that's still the case, but realize there's no way to stop where we're going. You're either going to get left far behind by choosing not to integrate the latest trans-humanist tech, else will will have the advantage and the associated risks.

To get back on the topic of cell phones. It's changing us, in more than one way. Early studies on 3G penetration in Australia showed shifts in how people were interacting, and going about their daily lives. People behave differently when they have the safety of instant communication and vast supplies of data at their fingertips. That's now happening the world over. We have more smartphone users than personal computer users worldwide. This is an absolute game-changer that will reshape the world as the decentralization/open-source movement expands.

Now, on a biological level, there's no reason to think all those flashies aren't messing with us hormonally, and actually transforming the structure and function of our psyches. All stimuli influences our minds. I listened to NPR a couple years ago, and it mentioned a (then) soon to be released study showing that children's brains were developing differently in the presence of the newer technology around them. They are seeming to mature faster, was the hint that was given. Doesn't this go along with the culture of trying to have mini-me children who act like little adults?

You could potentially even tie in autistic spectrum disorders into this. If individuals spend 8-10 hours on their smartphone, how much less time do they have for personal contact that involves social instincts, activating in large part due to the non-verbal communication (90%) that doesn't go along with texting or emailing?!

Lot's to be thought about here. What is best? Who defines best? Has best ever been static? Are we not supposed to adapt, and evolve? I don't have answers for any of these questions anymore, except that best is always value dependent, and values shift over time.

a reply to: knoledgeispower
I can really see this as being a major possibility in terms of students studying for exams/degrees etc.
The "Smart" phone generation are distracted from their point in what we call"reality",for other points in the digital ether so often that they have trouble concentrating for long in one place.

Not just students-watch a film with some friends,and see if any of them hop onto their mobile/cell phones more than once during the film.Many,if not all will.
Ask them to recount what just happened in the film,and they will have no clue.

Disturbed concentration,I tell ya'll.

I may sound like a freak,but I have stepped outside the realm of owning a mobile phone for the last few months,and I must say it is liberating.
My thoughts are no longer subject to the interruption from the next vibrate or beep of my phone.

I can concentrate properly again,and its good.
Reading/Writing ability is way up,and I even have more energy.
Highly recommendable if you can.

a reply to: Silcone Synapse

I don't use my cell phone much, only a couple people have my number. It's mainly so doctors can get a hold of me & my family.

I play games when I am bored but I get bored of those so easily. I am glad I am not as addicted to my phone as I used to be. There is a reason it got the nickname, Crackberry, it was damn addicting.

a reply to: Silcone Synapse

I don't think cell phone's inherently disturb one's concentration. It seems some people adapt, and some people don't. The adaptation here would be to focus on the most important task at hand, and to multitask more efficiently. The people who aren't effectively adapting would have the issue you speak of.

I think there's flavors of "adhd" popping up with all the new stimuli surrounding us. Some of it doesn't require anything at all, it's simply a nuisance to some people that they are able to shift so rapidly and utilize all the information around them so well. The other type is true inattentiveness, and lack of concentration. I can tell you that tech doesn't do this for me in the least. If anything, tech keeps me sufficiently stimulated to keep growing at a rate that my psyche requires. Without all the stimuli that tech enables, I would stagnate and even regress.

Oh, I'd like to point out that I never allow tech on my person. It's always at least a foot away from my body. Maybe that is the problem? Don't stick it next to your junk, or brain. That's just stupid.

People are usually not as good at multi-tasking as they think they are.

phys.org...

I can see at least two problems with the fact that college students spend an average 8-10 hours (!!) on their cell phones a day. One is divided attention. Two is that they have "all the answers" at their fingertips - they can google any question that comes up. This is robbing them of time spent critically thinking about a problem, or interacting with other people to come to a solution.

But I'm a 38-year-old old fart who didn't even get a cell phone until I was 30.

I know people who pick up their phones for instructions to do something right away. Now how are you going to increase your mechanical aptitude if you rely on others to walk you through everything you do. Your ability to figure things out is not utilized and then it will disappear because of not using it.

Oh sorry, I forgot, this is what government wants, it makes us totally dependent on others to find our way through life.

Never mind, I forgot my place as a mouse. At least I am not a sheep.

a reply to: pl3bscheese
There are articles linking ASD to men putting their cell phones on their belts.

They specifically say women usually have purses which are farther from the reproductive organs. When cells were small enough to be in pockets womens reproductive organs are more insulated than men's are.

It is very interesting to consider this as a contributing factor.

One of my best new friends is a 98 year old man (born in 1915!) and the other is my next door neighbor who is 86.

Both of them keep busy on a daily basis puttering with mechanical things, the younger one is building a cabin on his property and has a load of farm-style machinery to help with the process. He also dug a new pond this year and helps out the neighbors when they need something done with heavy equipment. He has a tractor from the 1930s that he still uses and keeps in working condition.

Both are lean, muscular, active and have all their wits about them, as well as their hearing and eyesight.

Something tells me that their generation will be the last one to ever really *do* anything ever again, especially if it takes actual physical labor and not the fake exercise that comes in a gym membership.

Anyone else remember that Star Trek TNG episode where someone brought a game on board that everyone became addicted to because it caused mental orgasms...?

originally posted by: VegHead
People are usually not as good at multi-tasking as they think they are.

phys.org...

I can see at least two problems with the fact that college students spend an average 8-10 hours (!!) on their cell phones a day. One is divided attention. Two is that they have "all the answers" at their fingertips - they can google any question that comes up. This is robbing them of time spent critically thinking about a problem, or interacting with other people to come to a solution.

But I'm a 38-year-old old fart who didn't even get a cell phone until I was 30.

There were distractions back in the 1970's, 1980's and 1990's too. If you had a garden, then you probably had a baseball hoop above the garage door, a skateboard, or a Swingball set up on the garden lawn. Or maybe surfboarding if you lived along the coast.

There were PC and console games back in the 1990's. Most students just deleted their games directories when it came to final year. Then in the mid-1990's, the first ISP's became available. Having access to USENET, Gopher, Netscape, and FTP was the Google of the time. Took a couple of hours every evening.

a reply to: knoledgeispower

They needed a survey for this? Ask any teacher and they can tell you cell phones are a disruption in the classroom and the learning environment. lol

a reply to: WeRpeons

There are some studies that are being done that just seem to be a waste of money. Like the one that was recently done on couple who don't have as much sex once they are married. Seriously? What a waste of money.

Pretty soon all they will need is a pencil to get in.. You got a pencil get the f*ck in there is physics. - George Carlin.

I am glad this was never said in the past or I might be slighting rethinking that documentary Idiocracy as being just a movie.

Language

a reply to: ThichHeaded

Man I miss George. I wonder what he would be saying if he were alive right now?