Nomophobia and smartphone addiction amidst COVID-19 home confinement: the parallel mediating role of digital gaming and social media tools usage across secondary school students.

Introduction: With the inevitable technological boom enforced by the COVID-19 lockdowns and online emergency remote teaching practices, the prevalence of nomophobia (NMP) and smartphone addiction (SA) among adolescents has become a pressing issue, which has come under scrutiny. However, the impact of social media tools usage (SMTU) and digital gaming behavior (DGB) on these phenomena remains unclear since there is little research focusing on the complex interplay among these variables. Regarding this context, the present study aimed to explore the parallel mediating role of secondary school students' SMTU and DGB in the relation between NMP and SA. Methods: In line with this aim, we employed a cross-sectional design with a critical case sampling strategy and collected data through an online survey from a total of 427 secondary school students in Istanbul in the 2021-2022 academic year. In order to test the parallel mediation model, we employed multiple linear regression models by utilizing PROCESS models with 5000 BC bootstrap samples and 95% CI. Results and discussion: Results illustrated that there was an increase in the prevalence of NMP and SA during the COVID-19 home confinement as consistent with the previous research. The results also indicated that among the multiple mediators, the mediating role of SMTU was significant in the relation between NMP and SA. This means NMP has direct and indirect significant impact on SA through SMTU. However, the mediating role of DGB was found nonsignificant in this relationship. Our results are robust and hold key contributions to both theoria and praxis in educational psychology research realm by disentangling the complex underlying mechanism between NMP, SMTU, DGB, and SA. On the practical side, our results provide insightful implications for school boards and researchers in the development of effective interventions.

What colour are you? Smartphone addiction traffic lights and user profiles

PurposeThe key concern nowadays is smartphone addiction and user profiles. Following the risk and protective factors framework, the authors aim to characterize smartphone users according to two levels: (1) individual: referred to the use (i.e. boredom proneness, compulsive app downloading smartphone addiction) and (2) microsystem: referred to family and peers (i.e. family harmony and phubbing). Besides, the authors will derive useful managerial implications and strategies.Design/methodology/approachFirst, an extensive literature revision and in-depth interviews with experts were employed to identify the addiction-related variables at the individual and microsystem level. Second, information was collected from a sample of 275 Spanish smartphone users, and a K-means clustering algorithm was employed to classify smartphone users.FindingsThe proposed traffic lights schema identifies three users' profiles (red, yellow and green) regarding their smartphone addiction and considering individual and microsystem critical variables.Originality/valueThis study proposes a practical and pioneer traffic lights schema to classify smartphone users and facilitate each cluster's strategies development.

Impact of COVID-19 pandemic and its consequences on children's internet addiction and use of smartphone and tablet

BACKGROUND: Digital devices have represented a fundamental resource for maintaining communication relationships during the period of restrictive measures imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic. However it is evident that this period has contributed to increase the risks connected to the inappropriate use of digital devices. The aim of our study is to demonstrate how the COVID-19 pandemic and the consequent lockdown had an impact on children's use of digital devices. METHOD(S): One hundred and thirty children aged between six and 18 from Montalto di Castro were recruited in the study carried out in November 2020. All participants were asked to fill in two identical questionnaires: questions of the first questionnaire were related to the pre-lockdown period, while questions of the second questionnaire were related to the period between March and November 2020. RESULT(S): The average age of the 130 participants was 11.8+/-2 years. The amount of time spent by using digital devices is significantly lower in the pre-lockdown period than in the lockdown period (P<0.02). The smartphone addiction index is significantly lower in the pre-lockdown period (P<0.001). The analysis of headaches in the early morning hours - considered as one of the effects deriving from the use of the smartphone before sleeping - showed a statistically significant difference between the two groups (P<0.05). There are also significant differences related to physical activity and its frequency, with data showing the increase of children who did not perform physical activity (P<0.0001). CONCLUSION(S): This study does not only show a constant increase over time of the smartphone/tablet use, but also how the pandemic and social restrictions have worsened the phenomenon itself. This is particularly evident for the duration of exposure to screens, the addiction to smartphones, the quality of sleep and the practice of physical activity.Copyright © 2021 EDIZIONI MINERVA MEDICA.

The Association between Smartphone Addiction, Depression and Anxiety among Medical Students in Jordan

Introduction: Awareness of psychological disorders such as smartphone addiction, anxiety, and depression is a trending research area in the scientific community that has further escalated with the impact of COVID-19. In this regard, young adults and medical students are already considered to be under a high level of stress academically and culturally. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between depression, anxiety, and smartphone addiction among medical students in Jordan. Method(s): A cross-sectional study was conducted using an online structured questionnaire. The survey was completed by 164 male and female medical students stratified by years one to three in the basic medical sciences. The survey consisted of items from the Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD-7), Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), and Smartphone Addiction Scale-Short Version (SAS-SV), in addition to two questions concerning the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on smartphone addiction. Result(s): Among the students who participated, the mean age was 18.9, with almost half (47.2%) being first-year students. The results showed no significant difference in stress, anxiety or cell phone addiction based on gender or academic year. The logistic regression model was not statistically significant regarding the covariates, except for GAD, which had an OR=1.15 (CI: 1.06 -1.25). Furthermore, SAS-SV was positively correlated with GAD-7 and PHQ-9 scores (r=0.42, r=0.2, p< 0.000, p=0.029, respectively). Conclusion(s): The results of the study showed a statistically significant positive correlation between smartphone addiction, depression, and anxiety. These variables were not statistically different among medical students in terms of gender and academic year.Copyright © 2023 DSR Publishers / The University of Jordan. All Rights Reserved.

Does Smartphone Use Really Impact Cervical Rotation and Cervical Proprioception in Asymptomatic Individuals?

Background and objective Smartphone use has increased exponentially over the last two years worldwide. The outbreak of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic led to significantly higher dependence on the smartphone for information exchange and communication among the general public. Currently, India has hundreds of millions of smartphone users, and their numbers are on the rise. This has raised concerns regarding the adverse effects of smartphone use on mental and musculoskeletal health. In light of this, this study aimed to determine and evaluate the musculoskeletal consequences of smartphone use. Method A total of 102 participants (50 adolescents and 52 adults) who were smartphone users and are asymptomatic for cervical spine-related disorders were included based on convenience sampling. The components assessed were cervical rotation using tape measurement and cervical proprioception using the head repositioning accuracy test. Frequency distribution tables and text were used to report the results. Results The results of this research indicated reduced cervical rotation range and cervical proprioception deficits in both adolescent and adult smartphone users. Furthermore, no correlation was found between cervical rotation (right and left) and cervical proprioception (right and left rotation). Conclusion Though the results showed that both the individual components - cervical rotation and cervical proprioception - were significantly affected, there was no correlation between the components, which indicates that these asymptomatic individuals who are marginally excessive smartphone users are at increased risk for reduced cervical mobility and deficits in cervical proprioception.

Validity, reliability, and correlates of the Smartphone Addiction Scale-Short Version among Japanese adults.

BACKGROUND: The short version of the smartphone addiction scale (SAS-SV) is widely used to measure problematic smartphone use (PSU). This study examined the validity and reliability of the SAS-SV among Japanese adults, as well as cross-sectional and longitudinal associations with relevant mental health traits and problems. METHODS: Datasets from a larger project on smartphone use and mental health were used to conduct two studies. Participants were adults aged over 20 years who carried a smartphone. RESULTS: Study 1 (n = 99,156) showed the acceptable internal consistency and structural validity of the SAS-SV with a bifactor model with three factors. For the test-retest reliability of the SAS-SV, the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) was .70, 95% CI [.69, 70], when the SAS-SV was measured seven and twelve months apart (n = 20,389). Study 2 (n = 3419) revealed that when measured concurrently, the SAS-SV was strongly positively correlated with another measure of PSU and moderately correlated with smartphone use time, problematic internet use (PIU), depression, the attentional factor of impulsiveness, and symptoms related to attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder. When measured 12 months apart, the SAS-SV was positively strongly associated with another measure of PSU and PIU and moderately associated with depression. DISCUSSION: The structural validity of the SAS-SV appeared acceptable among Japanese adults with the bifactor model. The reliability of the SAS-SV was demonstrated in the subsequent seven- and twelve-month associations. CONCLUSION: The cross-sectional and longitudinal associations of the SAS-SV provided further evidence regarding PSU characteristics.

Factors related to self-reported smartphone addiction among Brazilian adolescents in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic: A mixed-method study.

PROBLEM: (1) To identify the factors associated with self-reported smartphone addiction (SRSA) among adolescents in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic; and (2) to analyze the adolescents' perception of these factors related to SRSA. METHODS: A mixed-method study with a sequential explanatory design, carried out with Brazilian adolescents aged between 15 and 18 years old. FINDINGS: The prevalence of SRSA was 56.37%, and the variables that remained in the final model of association were as follows: public schools; longer smartphone use during the COVID-19 pandemic; number of hours connected to the smartphone; preference for sleeping during the day; use of the device immediately after waking up, smartphone use after 9 p.m., amount of sleep less than 8 h a day; and smartphone use during meals. Sequentially, after analyzing the data obtained in the focus groups, it was possible to describe how adolescents perceive the intensification of smartphone uses, its repercussions, and activities carried out on it during the pandemic. CONCLUSIONS: The pandemic had repercussions on the behavior established with the smartphone, such as time and period of use, being associated with the SRSA. In addition, it was found that such conditions also affect the adolescents' sleep quality, diet, and studies.

Smartphone addiction reduction: effectiveness of print and social media education

Smartphone usage dependency in daily activities also causes vulnerability to addiction and its effects on health, especially the increment during the COVID-19 pandemic because of the switching activities to online. Research on the prevention and treatment to overcome smartphone addiction is still relatively limited. This study aims to analyze the effectiveness of educational media programs using social-media compared to printed-media in reducing smartphone addiction levels. Changes in interpersonal-relationship and self-esteem as a related mediator and affected negative impacts of smartphone addiction were also investigated. Media effectivity was assessed by the decrease of users' addiction level, and affected interpersonal-relationship and self-esteem. A three-wave cross-sectional series conducted on 54 subjects, divided into two groups were given the routine printed or social-media educational program for a month. Results from comparative analysis showed printed-media is more effective than social-media in reducing smartphone addiction;both are statistically significant (p=0.000). It shows that health education has a role in smartphone addiction prevention, but choosing the right and most effective media for specific populations is necessary. Both groups increased interpersonal-relationship, but self-esteem rose only in the printed-media group. Interpersonal-relationship tended to increase, while self-esteem varied from person to person, showing the addiction level might affect mental-behavioral health but still need further analysis of other influencing confounding factors. © 2023, Intelektual Pustaka Media Utama. All rights reserved.

The association between fear of Covid-19 and smartphone addiction among individuals: the mediating and moderating role of cyberchondria severity.

The coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) has quickly spread all over the world and has contributed to psychological consequences including fear of the virus. Depending upon the severity of their problems, individuals often search the internet via their mobile devices to understand whether the symptoms they perceive are symptoms of the disease. This condition has been termed 'cyberchondria'. In this context, the aim of this study is examine the mediating and moderating role of cyberchondria severity in the association between smartphone addiction and the fear of COVID-19. The sample comprised 520 participants (335 females [64.4%], 185 males [35.6%] aged 17 to 65 years [Mean = 28.61 years, SD = 10.60]). A survey included the Cyberchondria Severity Scale Short-Form, The Smartphone Addiction Scale-Short Version, and The Fear of COVID-19 Scale. Structural equation modeling and SPSS Process Macro moderator variable analysis were used to test the research model. The study found a positive association between smartphone addiction, fear of COVID-19, and cyberchondria severity. Cyberchondria severity had both moderating and mediating role in the association between smartphone addiction and the fear of COVID-19. In conclusion, it has been determined that during the COVID-19 pandemic, cyberchondria severity has negative effects on individuals' fear of COVID-19.

(Special Issue) Perceived Helicopter Parenting Related to Vocational Senior High School Students' Academic Achievement and Smartphone Addiction

Background and Purpose of Research Adolescents use their smartphones for various purposes, for example, following distance/online learning, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, staying in touch with friends, having fun using social media tools. According to the social ecological model, risk behaviors, like substance consumption, are regarded as behavior problems. Relatively, etiology is derived of youths' embeddedness surrounded by their social networks, mainly throughout sensitive development periods (Bishop et al., 2020). Given the prevalence of smartphone addiction among young students, previous studies have explored the relationships between smartphone addiction and students' learning and indicated there is negative outcomes of smartphone resulting from overuse of mobile phones, including poor sleep quality. However, there some antecedents of smartphone addiction which has not extendedly studied, for example, parenting style, thus, the present study aimed to explore the correlates between parenting styles, academic achievement and smartphone addiction. Parenting that reflects a combination of support and behavioral control has been linked to numerous indices of academic well-being and live functioning from early childhood through adolescence. In regarding the term helicopter parenting indicated that parents involve hovering behaviors and are potentially over-involved in the lives of their child or in their academic work (Padilla-Walker & Nelson, 2012). But empirical research has not adequately used these two construct from other controlling parenting practices to predict children's smartphone addiction, thus, the present study applied two types of helicopter parenting: live hovering and academic hovering of parenting for of emerging adults, to explain the prediction of children's smartphone addiction. According to Bronfenbrenner (1979) micro ecological system that discusses the association between person-process-content (PPC), who described "person-process-context model” (PPCM) that occurs variability in development procedure as considered in this paper as a functional context (mobile phone usage), person (parenting styles) and process (academic achievement). Not only has cultural ecology be likely to pursue its complications in issues originating from social and cultural topics, but intricate schools of understanding of culture-nature relationship have developed for certain risk behavior. For example, helicopter parenting is more obvious in Chinese families than Western ones, even though the parents want their children to grow up to be independent and think for themselves. Particularly, Chinese parents are more concerned about their children's schoolwork when they are teenagers, which leads to increased helicopter parenting problems, exacerbating issues such as lack of independence, lack of control, and not knowing how to self-manage smartphone use, which can in turn lead to smartphone addiction. If parents are in constant hovering of their children's lives or schoolwork, children develop dependent behaviors. Some studies have indicated that a child's dependent behaviors result in lower motivation to learn and reduced academic achievement. In line with this, drawn on PPCM to understanding the role of academic hovering and live hovering affect participants' smartphone addiction mediated by academic achievement, hypotheses are proposed as follows. Hypotheses (1) Live hovering has a negative effect on academic achievement. (2) Academic hovering has a negative effect on academic achievement. (3) Academic achievement has a negative effect on smartphone addiction. (4) Live hovering has a positive effect on smartphone addiction. (5) Academic hovering has a positive effect on smartphone addiction. Methodology Questionnaire was designed by adapting and translated from previous researched and gave to domain experts to ensure the content validity. Afterward, a purposive sampling was adapted in this study, a total of 400 questionnaires were distributed to 4 vocational senior high schools located in Taipei City. 354 of which were collected, resulting in a questionnaire collection rate of 88.5%. After 64 invalid questionnaires were excluded, 290 valid questionnaires remained, resulting in a valid questionnaire collection rate of 81.92%. Factor analysis was conducted on the valid questionnaires. Results First, helicopter parenting, live and academic hovering had a negative association with academic achievement, with an explanatory power of 20.8%. Second, academic achievement had a negative association with smartphone addiction, with an explanatory power of 38.6%. Third, helicopter parenting had a negative association with smartphone addiction. Fourth, academic hovering had a negative association with smartphone addiction mediated by academic achievement, with an explanatory power of 20.8%. The results of the study thus indicate that young people who are not independent in life or schoolwork tend to rely on their parents, are less able to control their smartphone use, and are more likely to develop smartphone addiction. By contrast, young people who are independent in life and schoolwork and do not need to rely on their parents have control over their smartphone use and are less likely to develop smartphone addiction. Conclusions and Recommendations The results of this study demonstrate that if vocational senior high school students are overly dependent on their parents in life or schoolwork, they may have lower academic achievement and therefore, they are not motivated to achieve strong academic results and will not restrain their desire to spend time on using smartphone, resulting in a tendency toward smartphone addiction. However, when vocational senior high school students do not have to rely on their parents to a great extent in life or schoolwork, they are able to act independently, attain high academic achievement, determine what they want to achieve, and arrange how they will accomplish their goals. Therefore, they have the ability to control the time they spend using their phones and will not develop smartphone addiction. This study suggests that parents should let their children learn to be independent and autonomous, which should help to effectively reduce the problem of smartphone addiction. Finally, conducting this study highlighted possibilities for future research. Some studies suggest that fathers and mothers do not necessarily share the same parenting style, and hence, it is suggested that in a questionnaire survey, the hovering styles of fathers and mothers could be differentiated and then analyzed through a differential analysis. In addition, some smartphone use can be designed with time of use to control using time (e.g., Chinese government limited the hours for children to use smartphone). However, how is the effect of the regulation to students' smartphone addiction should be further studied.Alternate : 隨著行動網路普及，人與人之間的通訊變得更加便利，也造成人們高度依賴手機。然而，手機使用失去控制已對健康造成嚴重危害，如成癮等。孩子的行為控制經常依賴於父母教養方式，尤其是華人父母在教養孩子方面與歐美國家的父母相比，會更加關注地自己的子女。這代表華人父母更關注於孩子的學業和生活，並形成更多按照父母親意志且欠缺獨立思考的媽寶，這將可能激起或停止孩子的手機成癮問題。本研究針對技術型高中學生進行問卷調查，有效問卷共290份，並對數據進行結構方程模式的驗證性因素分析。本研究採用生態系統理論，由AMOS 20建模，並從數據分析的結果進行分析。本研究發現：一、生活媽寶覺知與課業媽寶覺知對學業成就動機呈現負向影響；二、學業成就動機對手機成癮呈現負向影響；三、生活媽寶覺知與課業媽寶覺知對手機成癮呈現正向影響；四、生活媽寶覺知與課業媽寶覺知經由學業成就動機對手機成癮有正向的間接影響。研究結果證明，過分依賴父母的技術型高中學生有較低的學業成就動機，並無法控制手機的使用，因此造成手機成癮。換言之，父母應避免過多的日常生活與學業控制，以減少孩子手機使用的需求性。

Reduced brain activity and functional connectivity during creative idea generation in individuals with smartphone addiction.

Since the COVID-19 outbreak, the frequency of smartphone use has surged, which has caused an increase in smartphone addiction among individuals. Smartphone addiction can impair various cognitive abilities. However, to date, the impact of smartphone addiction on creative cognition remains unclear. The current functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) study compared neural differences between smartphone addiction tendency (SAT) and healthy control (HC) individuals during creative idea generation. In particular, by manipulating a key component of creative cognition, that is, overcoming semantic constraints, we explored whether SAT individuals could overcome semantic constraints. Both the SAT and HC groups completed the alternate uses task (AUT) in semantic constraint and unconstraint conditions. The results indicated that the prefrontal cortex (PFC) and temporal region were less active during AUT in the SAT group than in the HC group. In the SAT group, the PFC was less active under constraint than unconstraint conditions. Moreover, both task-related and resting-state functional connectivity analyses indicated weaker coupling between PFC and temporal region in the SAT than in the HC group. Furthermore, left DLPFC mediated the effect of smartphone addiction on creative performance. These findings provide unprecedented neuroimaging evidence on the negative impact of smartphone addiction on creative cognition.

Impact of COVID-19 on Adolescents' Smartphone Addiction in South Korea.

The outbreak of COVID-19 impacted numerous people globally, but most notably affected adolescents negatively by contributing to the increase in their use of media and smartphones and therefore their susceptibility to smartphone addiction. Based on the social-ecological model, this study seeks to identify the individual-, family-, and school-level factors of smartphone addiction through two groups of users: a first group whose smartphone usage time increased after the outbreak of COVID-19, and a second group whose usage time did not. Based on the data collected from 360 Korean adolescents aged 15 to 18, results reveal that personal-level factors (i.e., gender, depressive symptoms, self-control, and cyberbullying victimization) are associated with smartphone addiction. For the group whose smartphone usage time increased after the outbreak, economic status, academic performance, and academic year were related to smartphone addiction. Based on these findings, the study makes specific guidelines and suggestions on addressing the smartphone addiction among Korean adolescents.

Emotion regulation, e-learning readiness, technology usage status, in-class smartphone cyberloafing, and smartphone addiction in the time of COVID-19 pandemic

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has spread quickly, e-learning became compulsory and disseminated throughout the world. During the pandemic, smartphones are frequently used to access e-learning content, but connecting to technological tools increased the risk of cyberloafing during e-courses. Currently, there are a limited number of studies on how e-learning will evolve under compulsory conditions. Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the relationship between emotion regulation, e-learning readiness, technology usage status (TUS), in-class smartphone cyberloafing, and smartphone addiction (SA) of the students during the pandemic. Methods: In total 1294 students participated in this study. A research model was tested by structural equation modelling. Results and Conclusion: The findings of this study indicated that there is a relationship between TUS and SA. Emotion regulation was related to SA. E-learning readiness levels can help to explain cyberloafing. This study presents a conceptual model of the variables that affect cyberloafing in the context of the e-learning environment. © 2023 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Emotion regulation, e‐learning readiness, technology usage status, in‐class smartphone cyberloafing, and smartphone addiction in the time of COVID‐19 pandemic

Background Objectives Methods Results and Conclusion The COVID‐19 pandemic has spread quickly, e‐learning became compulsory and disseminated throughout the world. During the pandemic, smartphones are frequently used to access e‐learning content, but connecting to technological tools increased the risk of cyberloafing during e‐courses. Currently, there are a limited number of studies on how e‐learning will evolve under compulsory conditions.This study aimed to investigate the relationship between emotion regulation, e‐learning readiness, technology usage status (TUS), in‐class smartphone cyberloafing, and smartphone addiction (SA) of the students during the pandemic.In total 1294 students participated in this study. A research model was tested by structural equation modelling.The findings of this study indicated that there is a relationship between TUS and SA. Emotion regulation was related to SA. E‐learning readiness levels can help to explain cyberloafing. This study presents a conceptual model of the variables that affect cyberloafing in the context of the e‐learning environment. [ FROM AUTHOR]

The relationship between anxiety and smartphone addiction in the context of Covid-19: The mediating effect of attentional control and executive dysfunction.

In the context of Covid-19, the present study examined the relationship between anxiety and smartphone addiction and tested the mediation role of attentional control and executive dysfunction. Four hundred and twenty-one Chinese undergraduate students completed anxiety, attentional control, executive dysfunction, and smartphone addiction measures. The findings of correlation analysis indicated that anxiety was negatively associated with attentional control, and positively with executive dysfunction and smartphone addiction. The results of structural equation model showed that attentional control and executive dysfunction played a mediation role between anxiety and smartphone addiction in series. Moreover, anxiety did not directly predict smartphone addiction in the final model including attentional control and executive dysfunction as mediators, suggesting that attentional control and executive dysfunction were full mediators in the relation between anxiety and smartphone addiction.

Study of working from home: the impact of ICT anxiety and smartphone addiction on lecturers at NIPA School of Administration on job performance.

The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted on the working system, shifting working from office (WFO) into working from home (WFH) practice that requires employees to be skillful in using technology to support their work activities. However, this condition can affect job performance. This study aims to analyze the impact of ICT anxiety and smartphone addiction on job performance of all lecturers at NIPA School of Administration (Jakarta, Bandung, and Makassar). This study applied a quantitative method with a total sampling technique and conducted a survey on 135 respondents using an online questionnaire. Furthermore, this study employed job demands and resources theory as well as PLS-SEM to analyze five variables (ICT anxiety, smartphone addiction, interruption, job efficacy, and job performance) and to test seven hypotheses. The findings show that there is a positive relationship between ICT anxiety and interruption while interruption has negative influences on job efficacy and job performance. Therefore, this study recommends the facilitation of knowledge sharing related to ICT competence or literacy. In addition, NIPA should improve the security guarantees of the intellectual rights of the lecturers in relation to the choice of technology and integrate the demands of ICT needs with administrative-technical procedures.

Prevalence of text neck posture, smartphone addiction, and its association with neck disorders among university students in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The smartphone emerges as an inevitable gadget in modern society and its increased usage results in neck disorders among its users. However, the factors associated with neck disorders among smartphone users are ambiguous and less explored in the literature. The purpose of this research was to determine the prevalence of text neck posture, smartphone addiction/overuse, and its association with neck disorders among university students in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia during the COVID-19 pandemic. A total of 313 university students who were aged 18 years and older, owned a smartphone, and used it during the preceding 12 months participated in this cross-sectional study. A self-administered questionnaire was used to collect data regarding the prevalence of text neck posture, smartphone addiction/overuse, neck disorders, and the level of physical activity. Binary logistic regression was used to determine the association between the prevalence of neck disorders and text neck posture, smartphone addiction/overuse, and level of physical activity. The 12 months prevalence of neck disorders due to smartphone use among the participants was found to be 46%. The neck disorders were more prevalent among participants who reported text neck posture (P < 0.001) and categorized as smartphone-addicted/overuse (P < 0.001). Measures to promote the awareness of healthy use of smartphones including postural education and to decrease its screen time are warranted to reduce neck disorders.

Estimation of Behavioral Addiction Prevalence During COVID-19 Pandemic: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

Purpose of Review: The COVID-19 pandemic changed people's lifestyles and such changed lifestyles included the potential of increasing addictive behaviors. The present systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to estimate the prevalence of different behavioral addictions (i.e., internet addiction, smartphone addiction, gaming addiction, social media addiction, food addiction, exercise addiction, gambling addiction, and shopping addiction) both overall and separately. Recent Findings: Four databases (PubMed, Scopus, ISI Web of Knowledge, and ProQuest) were searched. Peer-reviewed papers published in English between December 2019 and July 2022 were reviewed and analyzed. Search terms were selected using PECO-S criteria: population (no limitation in participants' characteristics), exposure (COVID-19 pandemic), comparison (healthy populations), outcome (frequency or prevalence of behavioral addiction), and study design (observational study). A total of 94 studies with 237,657 participants from 40 different countries (mean age 25.02 years; 57.41% females). The overall prevalence of behavioral addiction irrespective of addiction type (after correcting for publication bias) was 11.1% (95% CI: 5.4 to 16.8%). The prevalence rates for each separate behavioral addiction (after correcting for publication bias) were 10.6% for internet addiction, 30.7% for smartphone addiction, 5.3% for gaming addiction, 15.1% for social media addiction, 21% for food addiction, 9.4% for sex addiction, 7% for exercise addiction, 7.2% for gambling addiction, and 7.2% for shopping addiction. In the lockdown periods, prevalence of food addiction, gaming addiction, and social media addiction was higher compared to non-lockdown periods. Smartphone and social media addiction was associated with methodological quality of studies (i.e., the higher the risk of boas, the higher the prevalence rate). Other associated factors of social media addiction were the percentage of female participants, mean age of participants, percentage of individuals using the internet in country, and developing status of country. The percentage of individuals in the population using the internet was associated with all the prevalence of behavioral addiction overall and the prevalence of sex addiction and gambling addiction. Gaming addiction prevalence was associated with data collection method (online vs. other methods) that is gaming addiction prevalence was much lower using online methods to collect the data. Summary: Behavioral addictions appeared to be potential health issues during the COVID-19 pandemic. Healthcare providers and government authorities should foster some campaigns that assist people in coping with stress during COVID-19 pandemics to prevent them from developing behavioral addictions during COVID-19 and subsequent pandemics. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40429-022-00435-6.

The Impact of Undergraduates' Social Isolation on Smartphone Addiction: The Roles of Academic Anxiety and Social Media Use.

The COVID-19 pandemic has an adverse effect on the physical health of societies and individuals. One important concern is the effect of social isolation on the mental health of undergraduates, such as academic anxiety, smartphone addiction and other social psychological problems. The purpose of this study was to investigate associations among undergraduates' social isolation in this special context, social media use for obtaining information about the COVID-19 pandemic (i.e., communicative and non-communicative), academic anxiety, and smartphone addiction. A cross-sectional survey was conducted from May to June in 2022 and a total of 388 undergraduates were included. The results showed significant positive associations between social isolation and smartphone addiction and academic anxiety. Furthermore, academic anxiety played a mediating role in the effect of social isolation on smartphone addiction, which was moderated by non-communicative social media use. Some theoretical and practical implications as well as research limitations are discussed.

Prospective Association between Smartphone Addiction and Perceived Stress and Moderation of Boredom during COVID-19 in China.

Smartphone addiction (SPA) is prevalent in college students and harms their healthy development, and perceived stress (PS) has been a well-documented risk factor of SPA. People often experienced boredom during COVID-19; however, its effect on behavioral/mental health during the pandemic has been rarely tested. We investigated the prospective association between SPA and PS before and during COVID-19, as well as the moderation of boredom. A total of 197 college students participated in four-wave surveys from December 2018 to June 2020 in China. The cross-lagged model was developed to investigate the prospective association between SPA and PS from T1 to T4. Boredom was added to the model at T4 as a moderator to explore the moderating role of boredom during COVID-19. The results showed that the pandemic changed PS's prediction on SPA. During COVID-19, boredom significantly affected SPA and PS and moderated the link from PS at T3 to PS at T4. The results suggest that the prospective associations between SPA and PS varied before and during COVID-19. Prevention of SPA should be conducted for new students and should be used to enhance their stress coping capacity. Intervention programs for eliminating boredom may be effective for reducing stress and SPA during COVID-19.