Smartphone Addiction Problem

By Author: Satjit kumar
Total Articles: 129
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Smartphones have become indispensable elements of our everyday life. These sophisticated gadgets have dramatically simplified several aspects of our lives. Depending on a smartphone for things like staying in touch with people, online transactions, navigation, and even medical consultation has now become commonplace.

Despite all these benefits, the usage of smartphones has a major downside too: many people are getting addicted to the device.

• The addiction is popularly called “nomophobia,” which means the fear an individual experiences when they do not have access to a smartphone. This fear is such that they are unable to exercise control over the time spent using the phone for some reason or the other.

• Nomophobia generally results only from the apps, games, and the various online platforms that one can easily access through smartphones. The device, by itself, is not the problem.

• People affected by nomophobia tend to be obsessed with virtual interactions on social media sites. This obsession can reach a stage where the individual sees no value in actual face-to-face interactions. They ...
... develop the delusion that the virtual world is the only reality.

• When nomophobia is allowed to continue for a prolonged duration, the person becomes vulnerable to many psychiatric disorders. Depression, anxiety, lack of self-esteem, and extreme introversion are a few of those.

• The presence of numerous dating sites and the easy availability of cybersex are also playing their part in making individuals addicted to smart devices. Indiscriminate indulgence in these things exposes a person to the risk of several legal and social repercussions.

• Sometimes, nomophobia leads to an adverse scenario where the individual begins to neglect their academic/professional responsibilities. That gravely endangers their career.

• It is rather disturbing to note that a major chunk of the instances of nomophobia are seen in younger individuals in the age group of 10-20.

Smartphone addiction- Statistics
These are some relevant statistics related to smartphone addiction.

• The number of teenagers addicted to smartphones is abnormally high in India.
• Studies clearly point out that roughly 45 percent of parents living in urban zones admit that their children use smartphones in excess.
• This statistical detail is specific to children falling in the age group of 13-17. Almost 50 percent of the people state that their young sons/daughters are indeed nomophobic. It is seen that these kids spend well over three hours on their smart gadgets, on a daily basis.
• Approximately 70 percent of individuals say that their teenaged offspring have unhindered access to smartphones for nearly the whole day.
• Globally, the use of smartphones went up by about 70 percent in the initial stages of the Covid pandemic. There was obviously a proportionate increase in cases of nomophobia, too.
• Worldwide, the average duration of a call through a mobile phone had risen to five minutes, in the above phase. Previously, it was well below four minutes.
• Throughout the world, roughly 25 percent of youngsters between the ages of 18 and 30 conveyed a key point. They can’t spend even a few minutes at a stretch without looking at their smartphone at least once.
• Almost 40 percent of millennials accept that, even on working days; they allocate a minimum of two hours for using social media through their phones.
• Well, over 50 percent Of teenagers prefer to be glued to their smartphone screens, even when their friends are just next to them.

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