In recent years, smartphone addiction has become a serious social problem, regardless of age.
I’m sure there are some of you readers out there who feel uneasy and can’t concentrate on what’s in front of you if you don’t check your smartphone frequently.
Problems regarding smartphone usage are common around the world, and even at American universities there are concerns that students using their smartphones during class for purposes unrelated to studying could have a negative impact on their academic performance.
We often hear of a solution to these problems, namely, completely banning smartphone use, but banning it does not eliminate the concern that smartphones cause. This solution may actually decrease people’s ability to concentrate.
So Ryan Redner and his team at Southern Illinois University in the United States conducted an experiment to try a solution that is the exact opposite of a ban.
The idea is to give students one-minute technology breaks during class, during which they are allowed to use their smartphones for very short periods of time .
The result was improved student concentration and better test scores .
It’s hard to deal with smartphones
Many people find themselves using their smartphones all the time, but how much time do people spend on their smartphones on average each day?
According to an online survey conducted by Citizen Watch Co., Ltd. in April 2024 targeting business people nationwide , the average time spent using smartphones per day, both for work and personal use , was “2 hours,” with 26.0% of respondents saying so.
A simple calculation shows that we spend 730 hours a year, or almost a full month, on our smartphones .
Furthermore, the majority (53.6%) answered “more than three hours,” and about 20% of those in their 20s to 40s answered “more than five hours,” showing just how deeply smartphones have permeated our lives.
By the way, if you’re concerned about how much time you spend on your smartphone, it might be interesting to check using features such as iPhone’s “Screen Time” or Android’s “Digital Wellbeing.”
While smartphones are convenient, they also aggregate all kinds of information, and can be a source of worry for people who are too concerned about their smartphones, such as social media posts, news, stock prices, and messages from acquaintances, and are unable to concentrate on work or studies.
Smartphone addiction has become a social problem, and in an effort to combat the temptations of smartphones, an app has been developed in which the longer you go without using your smartphone, the more fish will grow (“Quit your smartphone and your fish will grow”), and many media outlets are reporting on ways to combat the problem.
Additionally, a survey by Microsoft Corporation published by TIME magazine in 2015 revealed that the modern human’s attention span is eight seconds, shorter than a goldfish’s nine seconds, and that this is due to the impact that our increasingly digitalized lifestyles have on our brains .
There may be mixed opinions about the result of eight seconds, but it is said that the average human being can only concentrate at a desk for about 15 minutes, so in any case, it can be said that human concentration is not something that lasts long .
I’m sure we’ve all had the experience of losing concentration while working or studying and finding ourselves using our smartphones instead .
A research team from Southern Illinois University has announced experimental results that may be good news for us.
A one-minute technology break improves focus and productivity
Technology such as smartphones (although the paper refers to them as mobile phones, in this article it will be referred to as smartphones) and computers play a role in supporting students’ active participation in classes and learning by encouraging interaction between students and professors and encouraging them to ask questions about classes.
On the other hand, universities are faced with a dilemma: students may use these devices to engage in non-study activities during class, which could have a negative impact on their academic performance.
The researchers then gave students regular technology breaks during class to allow them to use their smartphones, and examined the effect of smartphone use during class on quiz scores .
The experiment took place over one university semester, with data collected from 22 classes attended by an average of 21 students.
In the experiment, students were given technology breaks of one, two, or four minutes during 11 lessons, and were encouraged to use their smartphones during the breaks by explaining that the purpose of using their smartphones during the breaks was to improve their concentration in class.
In addition, for comparative verification, question breaks of 1, 2, or 4 minutes were given in the same 11 lessons, during which students were only allowed to ask questions, and the use of smartphones was prohibited during the break.
All breaks were given 15 minutes after the start of class, and students were told that they would not be penalized for using their smartphones during class.
As a result, the average rate of smartphone usage per minute was 0.35 times during technology breaks and 0.53 times during question breaks, indicating that smartphone usage was less frequent during technology breaks than during question breaks, regardless of the length of the break .
The researchers also expected that longer technology breaks would result in less phone use, but the results were different: a one-minute technology break resulted in the least amount of phone use, with shorter technology breaks being more effective .
The reasons for this aren’t fully understood, but the authors say it’s possible that one minute is enough time to read and reply to a small number of messages, and conversely, having time to send more messages could mean that replies to them arrive during class, making them more likely to reply again.
Additionally, the average quiz performance was highest when a one-minute technology break was given (80%).
This suggests that a one-minute technology break reduces student distractions during class and improves performance .
Although there is still room for debate about the fact that this experiment did not collect data on the use of smartwatches or computers other than smartphones, and did not distinguish whether smartphone use was for academic purposes or not, the results are interesting.
One method for increasing concentration and productivity is the Pomodoro Technique , which involves repeating 25 minutes of work followed by short breaks of 2 to 5 minutes, and it is already known that short breaks are important.
As research into technology breaks progresses, they may be applicable not only to academic studies but also to work.