Women are using smartphones for four hours a day or longer and are more prone to succumb to smartphone addiction than men, the first-ever academic study on this topic has revealed.
‘Keeping smartphones away from reach can help overcome smartphone addiction.’
The study found that 52 percent of the women who participated in the survey used their smartphones for four hours a day or longer. Among male participants, only 29.4 percent used their smartphones for four hours or longer duration, the Indo-Asian News Service reported.
The study said that women are more prone to smartphone addiction than men.
The study involved 1,236 students from six colleges. Twenty-three percent of women participants were found to use smartphones for six hours every day, whereas only 10.8 percent of male respondents used smartphones for the equal period of time.
According to Professor Chang Jae-yeon of Ajou University in South Korea, his study was based on a survey of 1,236 students at six colleges in Suwon, Gyeonggi province.
“We expect adolescents are likely to show similar results. Female users are advised to consciously put their phones out of their reach from time to time,” Chang said in a paper published in the journal Public Health Reports.
Women pick up smartphones mainly for social networking website including Facebook and Instagram, using these services far more than just making calls, games and searches combined.
While men use smartphones mainly during breaks, women look at their phone screens while talking with others and also on the move, the report added.
One in five women (20.1 percent) said they have insecure feelings beyond normal when they cannot use their smartphones while only 8.9 percent of the men felt so.
For many women, the addiction to their smartphones has gone beyond simple hobbies to have reached a stage adversely affecting their mental health.
“Women’s desires for networking and communication are far stronger than men’s, which drive them to become more dependent on social network service (SNS) via their smartphones,” the study noted.
