my smartphoneaddiction

The average person spends between four and five hours a day on their phone. Tallied up over the course of one year—more than 1,460 hours will have been stolen from our lives.

Research says this addiction to our devices is not just a ecting our own lives—it’s negatively a ecting the ones we love most. Yes, smartphones are putting our closest relationships in jeopardy.

Couples

In the study, published in the journal Psychology of Popular Media Culture, college sweethearts were asked to report on their own smartphone usage—how dependent they felt on their device and how much it would bother them to go without it for a day. They answered similar questions regarding their partner’s smartphone dependency.

The results were uncanny. Those who reported their partners to be distracted by their phones were the ones who felt their relationship was doomed. Why? One hypothesis—called the “Displacement Hypothesis”— suggested that time spent on smartphones replaces meaningful interactions with your significant other, weakening the relationship.

Families

The same problem is evident in parentchild interactions. Dr. Jenny S. Radesky, a developmental pediatrician at the Boston Medical Center, studied parent-child interaction at fast-food restaurants. She observed over 70 percent of the adults used their phones during the meal. She took note of the delayed responses parents gave to their children when they tried to speak. Key to their development, children need to express themselves vocally to a parent— with their parent’s full attention.

Break The Habit

What can we do to combat this addiction? Practice these tips to keep the real world and digital

SET A TIME LIMIT, AND STICK TO IT. Don’t spend an exuberant amount of time checking your phone. If you need a way to track your minutes, download Moment— Screen Time Tracker, available for iOS and Android, an app that helps balance your screen time. You can also check out the BreakFree app.

WHEN DRIVING, KEEP YOUR DEVICES OUT OF SIGHT AND REACH. Put your phone facedown beside you. Better yet, put it in the backseat.

PHONE STACK DURING MEALS. As an incentive to not use cell phones at dinner, the first person who reaches for their phone must do the dishes.

SET ASIDE A SCREEN-FREE

Think outside the screen. Have a baking day or a family board

CHECK EMAIL OR SOCIAL MEDIA WHEN THE KIDS AREN’T AROUND. Get your screen time fix before the kids get up, while they’re at school or after they go to bed. You will be less distracted when communicating with your children and able to

DON’T USE YOUR PHONE IN BED. You’ll sleep better and won’t be distracted.

UNPLUG AFTER WORK. Put down the phones, and turn o the laptop. This will improve your family relationship as a whole. Think of the habits and routines you’re