Screen Addiction - Con Article

So much so that 75% of US college students consider themselves procrastinators.

At worst, they can negatively affect concentration, communication and sleep, or increase fear of missing out, procrastination and stress.

In our experience, if you were to ask a group of teenagers what they do when they are procrastinating, the common answers tend to involve their phone; texting, social media, games and shopping.

This effect was most pronounced for struggling students; however, trying to enforce this is a contentious issue for many students, parents and teachers.

Half the participants had the conversation with their mobile phones on the table; the other half had a notebook instead.

Are students addicted to their phones?

The dangers Reduced concentration A study on the science of distraction found that each time an office worker was distracted (say from a text message or email), it took them up to an average of 25 minutes to refocus on the original task at hand.

Is banning phones the answer?

Students don’t even have to be on their mobile phone for it to distract them.

As with all technology, mobile phones can have their pros and cons, depending on how they are used.

A study on young people and mobile phones found that 60% reported that they felt very agitated when they could not access their phone.

The dangers Reduced concentration A study on the science of distraction found that each time an office worker was distracted (say from a text message or email), it took them up to an average of 25 minutes to refocus on the original task at hand.

Encourage students to put their phone away during homework Or at the very least, encourage students to put their phone on airplane mode.

At worst, they can negatively affect concentration, communication and sleep, or increase fear of missing out, procrastination and stress.

Research by the Institute of Pyschiatry has found that adults who are distracted from work by emails and their mobile phone suffer a fall of 10 IQ points (more than twice the impact on IQ of smoking marijuana).

The sleep hormone, melatonin, typically gets released at around 9pm at night.

Their brains work differently to those of adults: they are more susceptible to peer pressure and have less self-control.

A study on young people and mobile phones found that 60% reported that they felt very agitated when they could not access their phone.

For tasks that require attention and cognitive demands (ie homework), researchers have found that the mere presence of a mobile phone may be sufficiently distracting to damage attention.

Research by the Institute of Pyschiatry has found that adults who are distracted from work by emails and their mobile phone suffer a fall of 10 IQ points (more than twice the impact on IQ of smoking marijuana).

What was particularly interesting was that the participants were not aware of the effect that having their mobile phone out had on them.

In our experience, if you were to ask a group of teenagers what they do when they are procrastinating, the common answers tend to involve their phone; texting, social media, games and shopping.

Turn down the backlight on mobile phones It is best not to be on your phone in the run-up to bedtime, but students can’t resist doing so, advise them to dim the backlight on their screens.

London School of Economics and Political Science recently produced a report that found that grades improved in schools that banned mobile phones.

This effect was most pronounced for struggling students; however, trying to enforce this is a contentious issue for many students, parents and teachers.