Most people voluntarily waste their personal and work time just looking at their smartphones. Today, this is not only a social problem but also a medical problem that needs to be solved. Scientists from India and Spain conducted scientific experiments show A sure way to spend less time on your smartphone.
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The experiment involved 149 volunteers who were divided into three groups and lasted 35 days. The first group of 55 people independently chose a goal – to reduce screen time by 10%, 20% or 30%. A second group of 62 participants were given a clear task – to reduce their daily smartphone use by 14%. The third group of 32 people served as the control group: participants were not subject to any restrictions, but the time they spent using their smartphones was automatically tracked. For both goal groups, successful completion of each task provides a small financial reward.
The strongest effects were observed among participants who were given free choice constraints. During the observation period, they reduced their smartphone use by an average of 49 minutes per day, compared to 23 minutes for the strict target group. Additionally, participants in the first group were 11% more likely to achieve their daily goals. In contrast, the control group spent an average of 11 minutes more on their cell phones per day.
After the main phase of the experiment was over, when rewards were no longer paid, the effect partially persisted: the group with self-selected goals continued to use their smartphones for about 16 minutes less per day than the initial level. The group that set boundaries also spent less time using their smartphones per day, but by 11 minutes. The control group spent an average of 2 minutes more on smartphones per day.
Furthermore, based on questionnaire data (which was not rigorously tracked), reducing screen time was associated with improvements in overall well-being, although this finding requires careful interpretation due to the limited number of participants who completed the questionnaire. Researchers believe that the benefits of self-selecting goals may be due to increased personal responsibility and the fact that limitations on personal choices are perceived to be more achievable.
However, the authors stress that this work was conducted on a small sample and over a short period of time, so further research with a larger number of participants is necessary. However, the results point to a simple and free way to help people take more control of their smartphone use – by setting goals themselves and achieving them, even in small ways.
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