WASHINGTON – More time than sleeping, more than time than eating or drinking, and certainly more time than studying — a new study shows college students spend more time on their phone than doing anything else.
The Baylor University study shows women college students spend an average of 10 hours a day, phone in hand, while their male classmates are on the phone nearly eight.
Lead author James Roberts says the digital technology is both freeing and enslaving.
“As cellphone functions increase, addictions to this seemingly indispensable piece of technology become an increasingly realistic possibility.”
The study is based on an online survey of 164 college students.
Students spent the most time texting — an average of 94 minutes a day, followed by 48 minutes of emailing, 38 minutes of checking Facebook, 34 minutes surfing the Web and 26 minutes listening to their iPods.
Roberts says approximately 60 percent of the students admit they feel they may be addicted to their phone, and some indicated they get agitated when it is not in sight.
The study, “The Invisible Addiction: Cellphone Activities and Addiction among Male and Female College Students,” is published in the Journal of Behavioral Addictions.
The differences between young women and men
Women spend more time on their phones, which Roberts say runs contrary to the traditional view that men are more interested than women 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,” Roberts observes.
Men send the same number of emails, but spend less time on each, suggesting they use the phone for more utilitarian purposes.
Excessive use of cellphones can cause several possible risks for students, says Roberts, The Ben H. Williams Professor of Marketing in Baylor’s Hankamer School of Business.
“Cellphones may wind up being an escape mechanism from their classrooms,” says Roberts. “For some, cellphones in class may provide a way to cheat.”
Real-world relationships also can be affected by extreme phone use.
“Some people use a cellphone to dodge an awkward question,” says Roberts.
“They may pretend to take a call, send a text or check their phones.”
Take the test: Are you addicted?
Participants were asked to answer the following questions, with 7 meaning “strongly agree” and 1 meaning “strongly disagree.”
- I get agitated when my cellphone is not in sight.
- I get nervous when my cellphone’s battery is almost exhausted.
- I spend more time than I should on my cellphone.
- I find that I am spending more and more time on my cell.
Roberts says the following three questions were used to confirm heavy users were using their phones more than those “less attached” to their phones.
- In a typical day, how many calls do you make with your cellphone?
- In a typical day, how many texts do you send from your cellphone?
- In a typical day, how many e-mails do you send from your cellphone?
Currently, the DSM-5, the American Psychiatric Association’s classification and diagnostic tool does not list phone addiction, but is studying Internet gaming for possible future inclusion.
As phones become more ubiquitous, Roberts says “We need to identify the activities that push cellphone use from being a helpful tool to one that undermines our well-being and that of others.”
