Publications
Partners
Researchers from Ruhr-Universität Bochum in Germany have reported that reducing smartphone use to just one hour per day can alter usage habits and also have benefits to mental health.
For the study, the researchers recruited over 600 people and divided them randomly into three groups. A third of the participants put their smartphone aside for a week, a third reduced the amount of time they used their device by one hour a day, and the others didn't change their behaviour at all.
READ MORE | Inspirational quotes are inescapable on social media. But are they really helping people?
Accordingly, the team discovered that the one-week intervention had an impact on device usage in the long term, as even four months after the end of the experiment, the members of the abstinence group used their smartphones, on average, 38 minutes less per day than before.
The group who had spent one hour less per day with the smartphone during the experiment used it as much as 45 minutes less per day after four months than before.
READ MORE | How to stop competing with peers and start connecting
The experts claimed that participants reported an increase in life satisfaction and time spent being physically active, and a decrease in levels of depression, anxiety, and smoking.
"It's not necessary to completely give up the smartphone to feel better," concluded Dr. Brailovskaia.
"There may be an optimal daily usage time."
Follow us on social media: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram.
Sign up to W24's newsletters so you don't miss out on any of our stories and giveaways
