Smartphone use and self-control impairment

Excessive use of smartphones has been associated with a number of negative consequences for individuals. Some of these consequences relate to many symptoms of behavioral addictions. The present study aims to investigate whether participants with high levels of smartphone addiction may have difficulty with their ability to wield the self-control that is needed to restrict smartphone use compared to participants with lower levels of smartphone addiction. Specifically, we expect that people with high levels of smartphone addiction may have problems in refraining from using a smartphone. In addition, we expect people with a high level of smartphone addiction may show deficiencies in cognitive tasks such as memory, executive control, and visual and auditory attention. An ABA design was used to analyze the effects of smartphone withdrawal. The first A refers to baseline measurements: Visual RT, Auditory RT, Go/No-Go RT and N-Back RT and Eriksen flanker RT. The B refers to 3-days of smartphone withdrawal, the second A refers to the same measurements used in the baseline. In addition, several standardized scales were administered, among them: Smartphone addiction scale-short version (SAS-SV), Fear of missing out scale (FoMOs), Procrastination scale, Psychological General Well-Being Index. One hundred and one participants took part in the study. Based on median split they were divided into two groups: high levels of smartphone addiction and low levels of smartphone addiction. Moreover, thanks to an app installed on the participant's smartphone, it was possible to measure levels of compliance with the task. Results indicate that participants with low levels of smartphone addiction show less difficulty in their ability to wield the self-control needed to withdraw smartphone use and faster reaction times on cognitive tests than participants with high levels of smartphone dependence. Moreover, the profile of participants with high levels of smartphone addiction shows higher scores on the FoMOs and Procrastination scale, and lower scores in the Psychological General Well-Being Index. The results are discussed in light of self-regulation theory.过度使用智能手机已被证实与个体诸多不良后果相关，其中部分后果对应行为成瘾的多种典型症状。本研究旨在探究：与智能手机成瘾程度较低的被试相比，成瘾程度较高的被试是否更难具备限制智能手机使用所需的自我控制能力。具体而言，我们假设高成瘾水平被试更难以克制智能手机使用行为；此外，高成瘾水平被试可能在记忆、执行控制、视听觉注意等认知任务中表现出功能缺陷。 本研究采用ABA实验范式分析智能手机戒断的影响。其中第一个A阶段为基线测量阶段，测试指标包括视觉反应时（Visual Reaction Time, RT）、听觉反应时（Auditory RT）、Go/No-Go任务反应时（Go/No-Go RT）、N-Back任务反应时（N-Back RT）以及埃里克森侧翼任务反应时（Eriksen Flanker RT）。B阶段为为期3天的智能手机戒断期，第二个A阶段重复基线阶段的相同测量流程。此外，本研究还施测了多款标准化量表，包括：简版智能手机成瘾量表（Smartphone Addiction Scale-Short Version, SAS-SV）、错失恐惧量表（Fear of Missing Out Scale, FoMOs）、拖延量表（Procrastination Scale）以及一般心理健康指数量表（Psychological General Well-Being Index）。 本研究共招募101名被试，采用中位数分割法将其分为高智能手机成瘾组与低智能手机成瘾组。此外，通过安装在被试智能手机上的应用程序，可对被试的任务依从性水平进行量化评估。 研究结果显示，相较于高智能手机成瘾组被试，低成瘾组被试在克制智能手机使用所需的自我控制能力上表现更佳，且在认知测试中的反应时更短。此外，高成瘾组被试在错失恐惧量表（FoMOs）与拖延量表上的得分更高，而在一般心理健康指数量表上的得分更低。本研究结果将结合自我调控理论展开讨论。