Is Your Smartphone turning You into a Nutcase?

Is your smartphone affecting your mental health? Yes, to a great extent, says new research. More and more people are becoming addicted to smartphones and this addiction is resulting in a host of psychological conditions. “Higher scores of narcissism (excessive interest or admiration of oneself and one’s physical appearance) and levels of neuroticism (negative personality traits including moodiness, jealousy, envy and loneliness) have been linked to smartphone addiction,” said Zaheer Hussain, lecturer in psychology at University of Derby.

Hussain conducted the research study into smartphone addiction and its related psychological characteristics, which clearly shows that the more you use a smartphone, the higher is the risk of becoming addicted. “There are various smartphone apps such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Candy Crush, Skype and email that make smartphone use psychologically more attractive and can lead to an addiction,” said Hussain.

The results of the study revealed that 13 percent of participants were classified as being addicted, with the average user spending 3.6 hours per day on the device. “A significant positive relationship was found between narcissism and addiction to the phones, suggesting that the more narcissistic a person is, the more likely they are to be addicted to their smartphone,” said the researcher.

Interestingly, despite 46.8 percent of participants speaking positively of improved social relations, 23.5 percent admitted their smartphones create communication issues within ‘real life’. The research also advises that prospective buyers of smartphones should be pre-warned of the potential addictive properties of new technology. The study was published in the International Journal of Cyber Behaviour, Psychology and Learning. (IANS)