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Study: Phone Use Linked to Lower Self-Control
1 Apr
Summary
- Teens reach for phones an average of 64 times during the school day.
- Higher phone use correlated with lower scores on concentration tests.
- Social media and entertainment apps dominate teen screen time at school.
A study monitoring middle and high school students revealed that phones are actively used throughout every hour of the school day. Researchers tracked 79 students over two weeks, finding that teens average over two hours of screen time during school, often reaching for their devices about 64 times daily. This compulsive habit was linked to significantly lower scores on tests measuring concentration and self-control.
The findings indicate that frequent phone use during school hours negatively impacts adolescents' ability to maintain focus on academic tasks and hinders essential social interaction. Social media and entertainment applications, including TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube, comprised nearly 70 percent of the observed screen time. Notably, high school students exhibited higher usage rates than their middle school counterparts, with some students accumulating over five hours of phone use during the study period.
