Smartphone Addiction Prevalence and Its Association on Academic Performance, Physical Health, and Mental Well-Being among University Students in Umm Al-Qura University (UQU), Saudi Arabia

Mohammad Saud Alotaibi, Mim Fox, Robyn Coman, Zubair Ahmed Ratan and Hassan Hosseinzadeh
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Mohammad Saud Alotaibi: Department of Social Work, College of Social Sciences, Umm Al-Qura University, Mecca 24382, Saudi Arabia
Mim Fox: School of Health and Society, Faculty of the Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities, University of Wollongong, Northfields Ave., Wollongong, NSW 2522, Australia
Robyn Coman: School of Health and Society, Faculty of the Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities, University of Wollongong, Northfields Ave., Wollongong, NSW 2522, Australia
Zubair Ahmed Ratan: School of Health and Society, Faculty of the Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities, University of Wollongong, Northfields Ave., Wollongong, NSW 2522, Australia
Hassan Hosseinzadeh: School of Health and Society, Faculty of the Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities, University of Wollongong, Northfields Ave., Wollongong, NSW 2522, Australia

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 6, 1-17

Abstract: Smartphone use can lead to smartphone addiction, which is a growing concern worldwide. However, there are limited studies about smartphone addiction and its impacts on university students in Saudi Arabia. This study aims to fill this gap. This is a quantitative study conducted among undergraduate students in Umm Al-Qura University (UQU), Saudi Arabia from May 2019 and February 2021. Study data were collected using both online and hard copy administered surveys. A self-administered questionnaire, Grade point average, Smartphone Addiction Short Version, and Kessler Psychological Distress scales were used to assess the outcomes. A total of 545 undergraduate students, mostly females, aged ? 21 years old and lived with large family sizes. More than half owned a smartphone for 5–8 years and the majority used their smartphone on average 6–11 h per day for social networking (82.6%), entertainment (66.2%) and web surfing (59.6%). Most of the participants were smartphone-addicted (67.0%). Logistic regression analysis showed that age ? 21, not gainfully employed, small family size and high family income were the main significant socio-demographic predictors of smartphone addiction. Smartphone-addicted participants were more likely to: have lower academic performance (GPA); be physically inactive; have poor sleep; be overweight/obese; have pain in their shoulder (39.2%), eyes (62.2%) and neck (67.7%) and have a serious mental illness (30.7%). This finding has significant implications for decision makers and suggests that smartphone education focusing on the physical and mental health consequences of smartphone addiction among university students can be beneficial.

Keywords: smartphone addiction; university students; academic performance; physical and mental well-being (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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