Smartphone Addiction Problem

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Smartphones have become indispensable elements of our everyday life. These sophisticated gadgets have dramatically simplified several aspects of our lives. Depending on a smartphone for things like staying in touch with people, online transactions, navigation, and even medical consultation has now become commonplace.

Despite all these benefits, the usage of smartphones has a major downside too: many people are getting addicted to the device.

The addiction is popularly called “nomophobia,” which means the fear an individual experiences when they do not have access to a smartphone. This fear is such that they are unable to exercise control over the time spent using the phone for some reason or the other.
Nomophobia generally results only from the apps, games, and the various online platforms that one can easily access through smartphones. The device, by itself, is not the problem.
People affected by nomophobia tend to be obsessed with virtual interactions on social media sites. This obsession can reach a stage where the individual sees no value in actual face-to-face interactions. They develop the delusion that the virtual world is the only reality.
When nomophobia is allowed to continue for a prolonged duration, the person becomes vulnerable to many psychiatric disorders. Depression, anxiety, lack of self-esteem, and extreme introversion are a few of those.
The presence of numerous dating sites and the easy availability of cybersex are also playing their part in making individuals addicted to smart devices. Indiscriminate indulgence in these things exposes a person to the risk of several legal and social repercussions.
Sometimes, nomophobia leads to an adverse scenario where the individual begins to neglect their academic/professional responsibilities. That gravely endangers their career.
It is rather disturbing to note that a major chunk of the instances of nomophobia are seen in younger individuals in the age group of 10-20.

Smartphone addiction- Statistics
These are some relevant statistics related to smartphone addiction.

The number of teenagers addicted to smartphones is abnormally high in India.
Studies clearly point out that roughly 45 percent of parents living in urban zones admit that their children use smartphones in excess.
This statistical detail is specific to children falling in the age group of 13-17. Almost 50 percent of the people state that their young sons/daughters are indeed nomophobic. It is seen that these kids spend well over three hours on their smart gadgets, on a daily basis.
Approximately 70 percent of individuals say that their teenaged offspring have unhindered access to smartphones for nearly the whole day.
Globally, the use of smartphones went up by about 70 percent in the initial stages of the Covid pandemic. There was obviously a proportionate increase in cases of nomophobia, too.
Worldwide, the average duration of a call through a mobile phone had risen to five minutes, in the above phase. Previously, it was well below four minutes.
Throughout the world, roughly 25 percent of youngsters between the ages of 18 and 30 conveyed a key point. They can’t spend even a few minutes at a stretch without looking at their smartphone at least once.
Almost 40 percent of millennials accept that, even on working days; they allocate a minimum of two hours for using social media through their phones.
Well, over 50 percent Of teenagers prefer to be glued to their smartphone screens, even when their friends are just next to them.