Screen time addiction in adults linked to borderline personality traits and psychological distress
Is scrolling social media contributing to a mental h♐e💝alth problem?
Probably, according to the author of a recent study, which found that addiction to screens —♛ computers, smartphones, televisions, game consoles and other digital devices — is linked to mental illness.
And while most studies have examined the effects of screen time on children and teenagers, the study, , examined the effects inဣ adults.
And the results weren’t encouraging.
“The growing interest and use of screen-based technologies throughout the world made me think about its pros and cons,” study author Adeena Ahmed, a clinical psychologist at Lifeline Rehabilitation Centre Islamabad in Pakistan, .
“As I read previously published articles related to screen-time addiction, I realized that very little importance has been given to this topic,” Ahmed said.
To analyze these issues🧸, Ahmed conducted a study involving 150 adults from Rawalpindi and Islamabad in Pakistan who completed the Internet Addiction Test, a questionnaire consisting of 20 statements designed to assess an individual’s level of internet addiction.
The questionnaire covers several aspects of screen-time use, including spending more time online than intended, neglecting responsibilities, preferrinꦇg online interactions over real-life ones and experiencing negative emotions when offline.
“Everyone knows about negative impacts of screens and how a behavioral addiction can have the same consequences as substance addiction, but we still have very little empirical evidence that support this debate,” Ahmed said.
Participants also completed questionnaires to assess symptoms related to borderline personality disorder and psycho🍃logical distress.
Borderline personality disorder, , is a mental illness marked by self-image problems, a pattern of unstable relationships, inappropriate anger, impulsiveness🙈, frequent mood swings and difficulty managing emotions and behavior.
The study foꦉund a relationship between screen time and both borderline personality disorder symptoms and psychological distress. Individuals who spent excessive time on-screen were more likely to show signs of borderline personality disorder, including mood swings and unbalanced emotions.
They were also mꦺore prone to experiencing psychological distress, which includes symptoms 𝓡of anxiety and depression.
The study found that men tended tꦜo be more addicted to screens than women, with men scoring significantly higher on measures of screen-time addiction. “I was expecting the same ratio of screen addictive b🀅ehaviors in both genders,” Ahmed said.
“We all know that ಌwe live in a world in which use of screen-𝕴based technologies is something we cannot avoid,” Ahmed said.
“The findings of this study can help the average person to at least keep a check on their screen time and try to balance it. Any behavior or any substance that we use in excess can lead to addiction and can further trigger psychological disorders as well,” Ahmed said.
