Smartphone addiction can also affect sleep patterns.
A study published in Frontiers in Psychiatry investigated how
smartphone addiction lowered the sleep quality of 1,164 university
students.
It found the sleep disturbance was prevalent among nearly 16% of the students.
Fear of missing out (FOMO).Research published in Cogent Psychology,
shows that smartphone users? anxiety can be reinforced by their fear of missing out.
FOMO describes a state of mind in which smartphone users get anxious with uncertainty.
For example, not knowing what their friends are doing may leave them feeling outside of the group.
As a result, they may feel less important among their group of friends. In response, they feel they must
regularly check their phones to stay up to date on current news.
The Cogent Psychology study also discusses attachment as an effect of
smartphone addiction on the brain. Attachment describes an emotional bond.
In psychology, attachment theory describes the connection between human beings,
such as between a newborn and a mother, and the separation experience, which can
create anxiety and distress in children. Similarly, smartphone users? attachment
refers to the anxiety and stress they feel when they are separated from their phones.