Problematic smartphone use and addiction among University Undergraduates in Ilorin, Nigeria - A pilot study.
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Date
2021
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
West African College Of Physicians
Abstract
Background: Smartphone use has increased at an increased pace across all age and socio-economic strata of the
society worldwide. Smartphone addiction is an emerging but understudied public health issue. Little is known about its
epidemiology, especially among young people. Teenagers and young people are an important target market for
smartphones hence for university undergraduates, who mostly fall into this category, smartphone use is a big issue both
from academic, social, psychological and behavioural standpoints. The phone is useful as an indispensable learning
aid, but smartphones have also become a focal object influencing social, psychological and behavioural aspects of the
lives of students.
Methods: 242 undergraduate students of the University of Ilorin were selected by systematic random sampling in a
pilot study and asked to fill a socio-demographic questionnaire and the Smartphone Addiction Scale-Short Version
(SAS-SV).
Results: The mean age of participants was 21.28+2.14years, 96.7% of the respondents owned a smartphone and
95.5% admitted accessing social media on their phones. Using normative SAS-SV score cut-offs of 31 in males and 33
in females, 29.1% of the students were addicted to their smartphones, 32.1% of males and 28% in females. The mean
SAS-SV score was 28.52+9.86.
The smartphone addiction score correlated positively with the number of hours spent on the phone daily, the age of the
students correlated negatively with the number of hours spent on the phone daily. Smartphone addiction was not
associated with gender, students' academic performance Cumulative Grade Point Average or level of study.
Conclusions: Smartphone addiction is an important problem among university undergraduates. Younger students are
more likely to spend longer hours on their phone, and have increased likelihood of addiction. It is important to
introduce behavioural modification measures early into the school curriculum to prevent potential hazards to students
in the course of their study.
Description
Keywords
Problematic smartphone use, university undergraduates, smartphone addiction
Citation
West African Journal of Medicine 38; 11 (Supplement): 23