Technology is becoming more a part of our lives then it has ever been before. In this day and age, it is more unusual to not have a cell phone than to have one. Siri can play music with just the sound of our voice and we can order an Uber with just a few taps on our brightly illuminated screens. As cell phones adapt and acquire even more advanced technology, they consume more of our time.
Before monitoring my daily cell phone usage, I was oblivious to how much time I spent on my phone. In one day alone, I looked at my smartphone 89 times and had 3 hours and 48 minutes of total screen time. Since these smartphones have become more customary and more advanced, they have also have become addictive. Smartphone addiction is defined as ‘the overuse of smartphones to the extent that it disturbs the user’s daily lives’ (qtd. in Fikret 468).
According to Green, if one answers yes to at least two of the following questions, they may be addicted to technology: Do you ‘freak out’ if you’re not connected, do you object either silently or overtly when asked to put your phone away? Do you experience cravings, withdrawals or anxiety if you don’t check your phone a frequent number of times throughout the day? Do you get anxious, nervous or fidgety if you don’t check your phone or tablet when you first open your eyes after a brief nap or longer period of sleep?
127 our experts are availableright now
By simply looking around, it is easy to see how this technology has consumed society. Some check their messages, post on twitter, google search, check Facebook, or browse on Instagram more than they actually talk to others. There are many elements that have contributed to this silent addiction that some do not even know they have. ‘Social media has fast become a tool that brings millions of members together in the virtual environment by providing them with enormous power, opportunities, and competence’ (qtd. in Fikret 468).
The only problem is that some people live on social media more than they live in the real world. They are constantly checking their phones to see if the likes on their social media accounts are rolling in. These people would even delete a post if it is not getting the recognition they think they deserve. Some even know the best date and time to post to get their desired results. This is because getting likes and reposts on social media, even from people they have never met, is just as important breathing to them.
The majority of people with cell phone addiction are people with low self-esteem and are prone to develop friction in their social relations (Acharya). Smartphone application developers intentionally keep users addicted to their phones. Have you ever noticed how you refresh applications like Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram? As you swipe your finger down on your smartphone to refresh your application, you are replicating the same actions used on slot machines (qtd. in Haubursin). The more time we spend using these applications, the more money developers make.
Seeing as slot machines make more money than baseball, movies, and amusement parks combined (qtd. in Haubursin), this is no mere coincidence. Developers also keep us coming back to their apps with the controlling power of color. Notifications are typically are red, this is because our eyes are naturally attracted to bolder warmer colors. Instagram’s old icon use to consist of an unattractive beige, brown, and navy blue color. The developers have since changed the application’s icon colors to red, yellow and purple to keep us coming back (Haubursin).
This is just one of many instances where developers change their icon to manipulate us to return to their applications. There are many negative effects of cell phone addiction. A study was conducted by Dr. Jayanti Acharya, an assistant professor in community medicine, focused on the negative effects of cell phone usage of college students from the ages of 17 to 23. It concluded that almost half of the students were not able to concentrate on their studies and aspects of their daily lives due to the constant distractions that they cannot resist caused by their cellphone (Acharya). There are also many health risks linked to the over usage of cell phones. In the same study, one of the most common health risk was insomnia (Insomnia).
