In January, New York Governor Hochul released a report titled "More Learning, Less Scrolling," aiming to limit smartphone use during school hours. A study conducted by public health and pediatric researchers at Stony Brook University, led by Lauren Hale, PhD, has been examining adolescent screen time. Their findings were published in the JAMA Pediatrics Research Letter on February 3.
The research monitored smartphone data from adolescents aged 13 to 18 and found they spent an average of 1.5 hours per school day on their devices. The study focused on smartphone usage between 8:00 AM and 2:30 PM.
Lauren Hale, Senior Author of the Letter and Professor at Stony Brook University, stated, “Unfortunately, too much of the existing research on digital media use relies upon self-reported data. In this study, we were able to objectively assess smartphone use, enabling a much more granular understanding of timing and content of smartphone use.”
Hale expressed concern about students missing out on learning opportunities due to phone usage during school hours. “As a public health researcher and a mother of two middle schoolers, I am concerned that too many kids are missing out on both learning and in-person social opportunities during the school day by looking at their phones. School hours are precious,” she said.
The research team employed Ipsos to recruit participants for the survey. Nearly 300 adolescents completed a survey and installed RealityMeter software to track phone usage. Data analysis was limited to those who provided information for at least two school days per week, resulting in a sample size of 117 adolescents.
Results showed that over one-quarter of these adolescents used smartphones for more than two hours during school days. The most frequently used apps included text messaging, Instagram, video streaming services, audio apps, and email.
Hale's team advocates for further studies with larger samples encompassing diverse populations. They concluded that while phones can facilitate communication and learning during school hours for parents and students alike, "application usage data from this study suggest that most school-day smartphone use appears incongruous with that purpose."
The Della Pietra Family Foundation supported this research effort.