College students may be starving, but whatever you do, don’t take away their smartphones.
Researchers at the University of Buffalo found that college students would rather spend time on their smartphones than eat their favorite snack after being deprived of both for a period of time.
As part of a recent experiment, 76 UB students, ages 18 to 22, were deprived of their smartphone or food. Afterward, participants could earn time with their smartphone or 100-calorie servings of a favorite snack by completing a computer task. The amount of work gradually increased as rewards were earned. The researchers also conducted a hypothetical questionnaire asking how many minutes of device use an individual would purchase at increasing prices (from $0 per minute to $1,120 per minute).
Ultimately, the researchers found that students were much more motivated to earn time on their smartphone and were willing to spend more hypothetical money to gain access to their phone. For any millennial or post-millennial, the results may come as no surprise. Instagram and Snapchat stories only last 24 hours, and when they’re gone, they’re gone forever.
FOMO is real, people!
Doctoral student Sara O’Donnell, one of the researchers, connected the study to the phenomenon of smartphone addiction, and the results were published in the journal Addictive Behaviors.
This isn’t the first time Generation Z has been accused of smartphone addiction. One report estimates that nearly half of Gen Z spends 10 hours on devices each day and that 98 percent of this demographic owns a smartphone.
The consequences of this addiction have experts concerned.
About 79 percent of Gen Zers experience symptoms of emotional distress when deprived of their personal electronic devices. Surveys have linked excessive time on social media and other “screen activities” to lower levels of happiness and more loneliness, depression, and risk of suicide. Researchers from Brigham and Women’s Hospital found that one in four college students suffered from a mental health disorder in the prior year, and 20 percent have considered taking their own life. Social skills, developed from face-to-face interactions, also seem to be lacking in this generation.
Today’s teenagers may be getting into less trouble (teen pregnancy rates are in fact down), but their gaps in life skills will ultimately catch up with them in college as we have seen with the large number of Gen Zers who are currently struggling with the harsh realities of college life. They may be too tech-obsessed for their own good.
Brendan Pringle (@BrendanPringle) is writer from California. He is a National Journalism Center graduate and formerly served as a development officer for Young America’s Foundation at the Reagan Ranch.
