We communicate, inform and entertain ourselves with it, so many of us have our smartphones in our hands all the time. But that is exactly what needs to be reconsidered. According to a recent study, well-being benefits if we use our smartphone less or not at all.
A new message! A like! Such events that take place on our smartphone seem to make us happy for a brief moment. However, the results of a recent study on smartphone use and well-being speak a different language.
Study on smartphones and well-being
The investigation was carried out by employees from the Research and Treatment Center for Mental Health at the Ruhr-Uni Bochum (RUB). Details are currently available in the psychological specialist magazine “Journal of Experimental Psychology“ to read. Accordingly, a temporary total renunciation of the smartphone should have a positive effect on general satisfaction. A reduction in usage by one hour a day should also increase well-being.
Also interesting: Do not charge your smartphone in bed at night!
Starting point and question of the investigation
According to the university, the population uses their smartphones for more than three hours a day on average. Studies have shown that intensive use can be associated with reduced physical activity, neck pain, limited performance or even addiction-like behavior.
For their analysis, the researchers interviewed 620 adults with an average age of between 20 and 30 years. The focus was on the question of how many (less) smartphones a day is good for us.
This is how the study went
All participants stated that they use their smartphone for at least 75 minutes a day. For the study, they were divided into three groups of around 200 test subjects each.
Group one should completely do without the cell phone for a week. Group two second dropped the daily usage by one hour, the third changed nothing. Immediately after the measure, the research team asked all participants about their lifestyle and how they felt. Another inventory followed about four months later.
result
Both the complete renunciation and the one-hour reduction showed positive effects on lifestyle and well-being. In the group with reduced usage time, these positive effects lasted even longer than in the abstinence group.
Head of research Julia Brailovskaia summed up that restricting use is likely to pay off in the long term. “It is not necessary to do without the smartphone completely to feel better,” says the lecturer.
Test result not representative
It must be said, however, that even if the results point in a clear direction, they are not representative. On the one hand, the number of participants is relatively small and, on the other hand, it is not possible to check how strictly the specifications were complied with in each case. Furthermore, the living habits of the subjects, which they had described themselves subjectively, were used for the assessment.
With material from dpa and the Ruhr University Bochum