Are you on your phone too much these days?
With all the social media scrolling options and nonstop notifications adding to real world responsibilities, many of us have considered a “digital detox.” Now there is new research on the effects of temporarily unplugging.
The study, published in PLOS ONE, looks at 51 university students who significantly reduced, or in some cases abstained from, using all social networking sites for one week. It found unplugging for a week produces a variety of subtle effects on mood, but does not produce withdrawal-like effects.
The research is authored by Michael Wadsley and Niklas Ihssen, professors in the Department of Psychology, at Durham University in the United Kingdom.
In its introduction, the study said while excessive use of social networking sites “is widely understood to have harmful consequences to our mental health and well-being,” and that frequent users often display behavior similar to those found with traditional substance use disorders, “no formal diagnosis for ‘SNS addiction’ currently exists and many researchers dispute whether certain excessive behaviors should be conceptualized as addictions, fearing that this could lead to an over-pathologization of normal everyday activities.”
The study found students who unplugged felt less bored and more engaged in activities. However, it also showed a small decrease in positive emotions, including cheerfulness and happiness.
According to the researchers, the short digital detox produced subtle mood differences.
“We found no evidence that temporarily restricting SNS use produces withdrawal-like effects,” wrote Wadsley and Ihssen. “There was also no evidence to suggest that limiting SNS use is associated with clear positive effects on well-being.”
Bottom line, abstaining or reducing social network sites usage for a week won’t have major effects on a person’s life.
The study concluded that “SNS use reduction has subtle and potentially offsetting effects on mood, and that urges to use SNSs are a robust element of motivational hierarchies in individuals exposed to modern technologies.”
