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Please note that the following article is an extension and modification of the psychological symptoms of phone usage section outlined in its main article called Problematic smartphone use.

The rise of the use of smartphones worldwide has resulted in an increase in negative psychological symptoms in smartphone users, which stems from excessive smartphone usage. In the United States alone, about 95% of Americans own cell phones, and 77% of them own modern smartphones. [1]People now tend to spend most of their hours during the day on their smartphones for social media purposes, surfing the internet, business productivity, academia, or gaming. Major psychological symptoms resulting from the excessive use of smartphones include (but are not limited to) depression, sleep deprivation, and withdrawal symptoms such as Nomophobia, if an addicted smartphone user is separated from their smartphone phone itself, or the sufficient signal needed to use the device's features. [2]These symptoms stem from a gradually built-up physiological dependence on smartphones which tend to manifest over the course of weeks, months, or even years. However, these symptoms may also develop from quick but frequent binges on smartphone apps and features by excessively addicted users.

Depression as a Symptom of Excessive Smartphone Use

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Depression is widely considered as the most critical symptom as a result of excessive smartphone use which harmfully impacts people's mental health stability, occupation, confidence, productivity, and social welfare. A recent study revealed that the United States alone has reported a considerable increase in the number of major depression incidences diagnosed among 12 to 25 year olds.[3] The reasons behind the focus on this age bracket was due to the fact that people within these ages were predominantly raised with access to personal smartphones, and because this age bracket is widely regarded as the high-pressure transitional years in life that render people more prone to low mental health symptoms such as depression and isolation. As a result, researchers tend to encourage addicted smartphone users to reflect on their relationship and dependency on their smartphone devices in order to self-impose boundaries if necessary. [3] Left undiagnosed or ignored, depression as a symptom of excessive smartphone use may even further develop into substance abuse and suicidal tendencies.

Due to the increased use of smartphones with the goal of remaining updated on digital media and trending news, research has proven that recent cultural trends also tend to fluctuate mood disorders and suicide-related outcomes; particularly among younger generations than other generations. [4] Moreover, addicted users tends to switch between social media applications frequently, causing their moods of social interaction also oscillate depending on the social media platform they alternate between. As a result, the high frequency of this behavior adversely propels mood disorders among excessive smartphone users. People impacted and diagnosed with depression as a symptom of smartphone use are strongly recommended to revise their expenditure of their leisure time and consider lifestyle changes such as improved exercise routines and strict self-imposed time limits of daily smartphone use, to ensure sufficient mental health and daily sleep hygiene.

Sleep Deprivation as a Symptom of Excessive Smartphone Use

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Child from the younger generation impacted by smartphone blue light during bed time smartphone usage.

Given that good sleep is integral to overall optimal health, excessive users of smartphones tend to suffer from sleep deprivation due to impaired sleep routines developed over the course of weeks and months. Poor sleep hygiene has been linked to obesity, numerous types of heart diseases, type-2 diabetes and the further development of depression. [5] Excessive smartphone usage leads to sleep deprivation as a result of the artificial lighting embedded into all smartphones.

Smartphones come with built-in lights that illuminate the device screen by emitting a light of a blue wavelength. However this blue wavelength light gets perceived by the human brain as a source of daylight during nighttime exposure to smartphone screens; signaling the brain to remain awake. Within the course of days, a smartphone screen's blue light may disrupt the biological sleep cycle which serves to regulate the human circadian rhythm which is vital to ensure healthy sleep hygiene and other internal body functions. [6]

Withdrawal Symptoms of Excessive Smartphone Use

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Nomophobia

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The rise in the global use and addiction to smartphones has introduced numerous adverse impacts on psychological conditions of fear.Nomophobia (no-mobile-phone-phobia) is growing fear in the modern world that pertains to excessive smartphone users who have a fear of not having access and control over their smartphone to a persistently severe level that disrupts their daily life. [7] Nomophobic smartphone users often display a high dependency on their device which stimulates the development of critical psychological consequences, where the individual's transactive memory abilities become impaired overtime. [8] This is because when smartphones are used excessively for their external reliable information and entertainment platforms, the brain's ability to obtain and retain information from other external sources get hindered overtime. As a result, the body and brain develops an impulsive need to access a smartphone.

There is currently not enough research to support a consistent method to differentiate between diagnosed patients who become Nomophobic as a consequence of excessive smartphone addiction, and existing anxiety disorders which go on to sprout symptoms of Nomophobia. [7] However, there are definitive signs and symptoms observed in Nomophobic patients that vary between anxiety, irregular breathing, trembling, perspiration, agitation, disorientation and tachycardia. [9] Research has also shown that Nomophobia may serve as a catalyst to a number of other mental disorders such as (but not limited to) social phobia or social anxiety, and panic disorder which propel Nomophobic symptoms among excessive smartphone users. [10]

See Also

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References

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  1. ^ Baker, Justin (2017-10-18). "The Epidemic of Mobile Addiction: Signs, Symptoms, and Stats". Medium. Retrieved 2020-11-16.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  2. ^ "Problematic smartphone use", Wikipedia, 2020-11-16, retrieved 2020-11-16
  3. ^ a b Sliwa, Jim (2019). "Mental Health Issues Increased Significantly in Young Adults Over Last Decade". www.apa.org. Retrieved 2020-11-16.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  4. ^ "Which comes first: Smartphone dependency or depression?". ScienceDaily. Retrieved 2020-11-16.
  5. ^ "CDC - Sleep and Chronic Disease - Sleep and Sleep Disorders". www.cdc.gov. 2019-02-13. Retrieved 2020-11-16.
  6. ^ "How Blocking Blue Light at Night Helps You Sleep". Healthline. 2020-05-21. Retrieved 2020-11-16.
  7. ^ a b "Nomophobia: Fear of Being Without Your Phone Stressing You Out?". Healthline. 2019-08-27. Retrieved 2020-11-16.
  8. ^ "Teens and "Nomophobia": Cell Phone Separation Anxiety". archives.drugabuse.gov. Retrieved 2020-11-16.
  9. ^ Gilbert, Neetu. "AN UPTREND AMONG STUDENTS: NOMOPHOBIA". Journal of Applied Science And Research – via Journal of Applied Science And Research.
  10. ^ Tran, Dewey (2016). "Classifying Nomophobia as Smart-Phone Addiction Disorder" (PDF). UC Merced Undergraduate Research Journal, 9(1).
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