by Carlotta Koroll

Conscious use of digital media

There is no question that the use of digital devices and digital media is still growing. Even before the pandemic, this trend was evident. Anywhere we go, we see people stuck to their phones, even kids on the way to school.

On average, smartphone users unlock their screens 53 times a day. With eight hours of sleep, this equates to one distraction every 18 minutes. Our behaviour is not without consequences: According to a review of 23 studies, the unhealthy use of smartphones can foster depression and anxiety - which can contribute to the development of addictions.

In this article, we will take a look at how mobile phones affect our daily lives. After all, only very few people can and want to live without them. If the use of technology is harmful to us, but returning to the analogue age isn’t possible, how can we find the right balance?

Our smartphones distract us from what’s important

We see that we have received a message, just want to quickly reply and all of a sudden thirty minutes have passed (most of which we have spent looking at funny animals on Facebook). We wanted to use the time to clean our apartment, do our tax return or something else that’s important, but instead we got sucked into the digital world again.

Having the internet’s unlimited possibilities in our pockets is a great temptation. In fact, cat videos and the Instagram feed are not the only way that mobile phones take away our attention.

In one experiment, participants were given tasks that tested their working memory and fluid intelligence, i.e. their logical thinking. One third of the group kept their smartphone on their desk, the second third kept it in their pocket and the last group left it in another room. Overall, the first two groups performed worse in the exercises than the group without a mobile phone in the room.

This means that our smartphone reduces our ability to concentrate both by actively distracting us and by simply being present in the room. If we really want to focus on something, we should at least remove our phone from our field of vision. Give it a try - don’t you feel more focused right away?

Social media provides us with recognition from others

Social media is probably the most popular activity people engage in on their phones. Instagram, WhatsApp, Facebook and the like give us the opportunity to be in constant contact with just about anyone. Whether it’s a friend in Australia or someone we’ve never met. Common interests and values allow us to connect with others more quickly and easily than ever before. This can be very rewarding, not just in our private lives, but also at work.

However, how does this impact our relationships with the people in our immediate environment? When we feel our mobile phone vibrating during a walk with a friend and pick it up, it will cut off our interaction instantly. This interruption can damage our mutual respect, even if it happens unconsciously. To compensate, the other person often pulls out their own smartphone - after all, it is now the next source of likely social recognition. And just like that, we are in a cycle that works against the actual personal relationship. You may not consciously think about this, but try to observe how you react when your counterpart picks up their mobile phone in the middle of a conversation.

Did you know that social interaction results in the release of dopamine? The developers of social media platforms are obviously aware of this and use this fact to their advantage. A few likes on Facebook can create a similar reaction in our brains as an interaction in real life. Followers and comments become social currency on the net, while they don’t have any value in real life. When you think about it, this situation is quite problematic and can affect us deeply on a psychological level - and make us more and more dependent on our phones.

In this context, the same thing applies as above: the mere physical proximity to our phones can affect us. That’s why it doesn’t hurt to banish them from our space from time to time. And seek for human contact instead.

Digital detox as a remedy for stress

The overwhelming flood of news and messages not only affects our concentration and relationships, but also our sensitivity to stress. Whether it’s the WhatsApp group with our friends, news from around the world or the Instagram feed. Our brain wants to process all the information, and if there is too much of it, our body goes into stress mode.

It’s no wonder that the trend towards “digital detox”, i.e. consciously refraining from using our smartphones (or our tablets and computers), is growing fast. But does this kind of “detox” actually have a long-term effect or is it more like a kind of diet which produces a yo-yo effect? The reality is that there haven’t been many long-term studies on this subject. One survey with a small sample size One survey with a small sample size - which accordingly does not have a high representative value - measured the stress levels of participants via a wristband. The study compared the stress values in people who use their mobile phones with and without an internet connection. The stress levels were lower during the “detox” without the internet.

Even developers have jumped on the trend of digital detox. For example, there are now ways to record and also limit screen time - either already integrated in the mobile phone’s software or available as an app.

A survey among young adults showed that 42 per cent of the respondents use these features. The study showed that the other 58 percent displayed problematic use of mobile phones and a generally poorer sense of well-being. The question is, can this really be attributed to digital detox apps? Or is it possible that users with problematic relationships to technology are less likely to measure their screen time? More research is needed to find the answers.

Finding a conscious way to use our smartphones

Similar to healthy eating and exercise, it makes sense to focus on a sustainable healthy approach for our use of technology. Instead of deleting all social media apps for one week only to catch up on everything we missed the next, we can ask ourselves which types of content actually benefit us.

Which groups do you need in order to maintain your social contacts? Are there any apps you only open when you’re bored? And what have you really gained after an hour on Instagram? Of course, most people don’t want to spend their daily lives without their smartphone - and they don’t have to. Some small steps to limit our use of digital gadgets can have big effects - whether it’s deleting certain apps, turning off our phone at specific times, or simply leaving it at home. At the end of the day, we are talking about a few habits, big or small. They’re not easy to get rid of, but when we do, we wonder why we ever needed them in the first place.

Here are a few quick ideas to help you spend less time on your phone:

-Disable as many push notifications as possible. -Move your phone out of your field of vision while you’re working. -Set your display to black and white (it’s crazy how boring your phone is all of a sudden). -Turn on airplane mode one hour before and after sleeping. -Leave your mobile phone at home for everyday errands, walks etc. -Digital minimalism: delete all apps and keep an eye on which ones you really need after a week.

Our mobile phone supports us in everyday tasks, makes it easier to feel close to our loved ones, especially in times of a pandemic, and can answer every conceivable question at any time. As with everything else, overuse of our phones can make us sick. The question is, how do we find the balance? Some people need their smartphone for work, others are in a long-distance relationship. So there is no simple answer. That’s why we need to be reflective: by always being honest with ourselves - is scrolling through our Instagram feed really giving us what we need right now? If you combine this approach with some measures

Picture 1: Cottonbro from Pexels Picture 2: Chris Adamus from Unsplash