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It is almost a compulsive movement. Regularly, as soon as we are able to abstract ourselves from what we do, we raise our hand to the smartphone to see if there are new messages, if someone has put a like on one of our posts, if there are reports of social activity to which we must be ready to respond, if we want to hear a song or a podcast.
The smartphone, as well as the tablet, have now become inseparable travel companions for many of us. But be careful not to become “addicted”. The risk exists, especially for young people. To say this is a research conducted at King’s College London on a population of students, which appeared in Frontiers in Psychiatry, which demonstrates how we need to use these tools of connection with greater judgment, for our psychological well-being.
The danger of “depending” on the device
The survey carried out by the English team examined a thousand students through a targeted survey, precisely to assess how much the smartphone is able to catalyze the attention of those who use it to the point of making it truly one with the need to “give life” to the screen.
Through a specific questionnaire, the researchers assessed both the psychological conditions of the study participants and the risk of becoming “addicted” from the instrument (for example if you forgot other things to do because you could not close the screen or the appearance of anxiety if you were detached from this technological “offshoot” for a long time) both the impact and the usage habits of the more technological cell phones could have on the rhythms of sleep.
About four out of ten respondents, according to the results of the study, showed signs of real dependence on the smartphone, feeling uncomfortable when the device remained out of their reach even for a limited time and reporting that they were unable to complete certain activities of their own. due to the presence of the smartphone.
Curious is also the “weight” of the spasmodic attention to the smartphone on sleep. According to the survey, although more than one in two young people in general reported a potential impact of the presence of the smartphone on sleep rhythms, the percentage rises to almost 70 percent in those who have the characteristics to be somehow ” dependent “on the instrument.
Waiting for the “connection”
It is not the first time that studies have been carried out to see how smartphones enter heavily into our daily rhythms and in some way have relevance, if used improperly and with an almost “morbid” relationship, on our psyche and our health.
Some time ago on this front a study by the University of Worchester had shown how the lack of social “connections” could increase the state of agitation and nervousness of those who want to feel their best thanks to the “signals” arriving on the screen. Agitation and nervousness would in fact be the characteristic traits of those who wait for the classic “ping” which can indicate an e-mail message, a share on Facebook or an activity on Twitter.
The survey showed that the risk is higher especially for adolescents, but does not spare adults. We are careful not to overdo it, it is the advice of the experts. And, in the evening, we give a sharp “stop” so as not to spend hours chatting or otherwise keeping us on the “network”, ruining sleep.
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