Teenagers addicted to their smartphones are unhappy, new study discovers

New Study: Are teenagers addicted to their smartphones unhappy?

Shelina Assomull

29 Jan 2018

The answer is yes, according to The University of Michigan – but why?

1/5
Make meal times phone-free
Having a 'no phones at the dinner table' is a great way to cut phone time without actually aiming it at your kid. Plus it will give the family a good chance to talk about their day.
2/5
Be a role model
For your children to see why they shouldn't be on their phone, it's important that mum and dad aren't always on their phones too. Setting an example is the first step in getting them to follow your advice.
3/5
Set limits
Be prepared to be the bad guy in this one, but setting limits on phone usage might be beneficial in the long run. Sit down with your child and ask them what they think is reasonable, to allow them to have their say on the matter.
4/5
Encourage them to go out
Although going out too much is a highly contentious issue between parents and teens, it may be better than the alternative (i.e. being holed up in their rooms on their smartphones all day). Going out with their friends and being sociable in person is not only healthy, but also important in reducing their need for online sociability.
5/5
No phones in bed
"But it's my alarm!" How many times have you heard this one? Buy them an actual alarm clock. Studies have shown that using a phone before bedtime is detrimental to your quality of sleep. Sleep is an essential part of keeping yourself happy, after all!

Teens who spend more time in front of screen are less happy, according to the study conducted by the University of Michigan, who surveyed over a million teenagers aged between 12 to 16 years.

Time spent in front of a smartphone screen can range from anything like surfing the internet, social media, texting, gaming and video chats. The findings, published in the Emotion journal, claims that teenagers who do any of these things for over 40 hours per week, reported the most negative effects.

They also found that teenagers who had 5 hours of screen-time a day were twice as likely to be unhappy compared to those with only 1 hour of usage per day.

And no surprises here; researchers said that teens who socialised in person more (and less so online), were the ‘happiest’ by far. When defining about ‘happiness’, factors like self-esteem and life satisfaction are taken into account as a gauge.

Although less screen time was beneficial, those who recorded no screen time at all were even more unhappy in fact, proving a healthy balance is always best.

These findings come at a time when we are gaining increased knowledge on the effects of social media on depression and anxiety. These issues are something many parents are concerned about, and struggle to tackle.

Getting your kids to get this balance right can be difficult, especially when everyone seems to be on their phones 24/7, so here are a few tips to get your teens on the right track!

Shelina Assomull

Photos: Pixabay/ Unsplash

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