The impact of problematic smartphone use on children's and adolescents’ quality of life: A systematic review
Open accessAbstract
Aim: To provide a systematic review on studies examining problematic smartphone (PSU) use in children and adolescents, and its impact on quality of life, life satisfaction, and well‐being. Methods: An extensive literature search was conducted in Google Scholar, Scopus and Pubmed. Results: The search yielded k = 9 articles for which inclusion criteria were met. Five studies examined health‐related or overall quality of life, two assessed life satisfaction, and two evaluated well‐being in relation to PSU. Negative associations between PSU and the outcome variables were reported almost consistently, with one study yielding only a trend for a negative correlation of PSU with life satisfaction, and one study finding no significant correlation regarding quality of life. Comparability between studies was impeded by the scarcity of studies which met inclusion criteria and by the use of different measures. Conclusion: More research is needed regarding PSU and the outcome variables in children and adolescents. Also, a distinct and consistent theoretical conceptualisation of PSU is required to replicate findings, and to enhance comparability between studies. Based on the trend reported here, the development of customised, early on interventions for children and adolescents at risk of PSU is warranted.
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Problematic smartphone use has been found to impede mental well-being and quality of life in children and adolescents.
“Problematic behavior has also been discussed for problematic smartphone use [43], which has been found to impede mental well-being and QoL in children and adolescents [76].”
From Effectiveness of Online and Remote Interventions for Mental Health in Children, Adolescents, and Young Adults After the Onset of the COVID-19 Pandemic: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis (2024) · cites this paper as [76]
The Results report mostly negative associations between problematic smartphone use and quality of life or well-being in young people, although some studies found no significant association. The Discussion states that none of the included studies was longitudinal, so no causal assumptions can be made; “impede” overstates what the review establishes. (LLM, conf=0.88)
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“Problematic behavior has also been discussed for problematic smartphone use [43], which has been found to impede mental well-being and QoL in children and adolescents [76].”
BackgroundSelf-citation
- Authors
- Fischer‐Grote, L., Kothgassner, O. D., & Felnhofer, A.
- Affiliations
- Department of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine Medical University of Vienna Vienna Austria
- Medical University of Vienna (AT)
- Corresponding author
- Felnhofer, Anna
- Venue
- Acta Paediatrica
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 2020-12-22
- Volume
- 110
- Issue
- 5
- Pages
- 1417-1424
- ISSN
- 0365-1436 (ISSN-L)
- 0803-5253
- 1651-2227
- PMC
- PMC8246779
- OpenAlex
- W3113112777
- Cited by
- 63
- References
- 58
- Citations by year
- 2026: 14 · 2025: 9 · 2024: 15 · 2023: 12 · 2022: 12 · 2021: 1
- FWCI
- 1.10
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- hybrid
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Acta Paediatrica (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Impact of Technology on Adolescents
- Social Sciences › Education › Child Development and Digital Technology
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Sexuality, Behavior, and Technology
- Keywords
- smartphone addiction, children, adolescents, quality of life, life satisfaction, well-being, digital health, early intervention
- MeSH terms
- Smartphone, Adolescent, Child, Humans, Personal Satisfaction, Quality of Life, Behavior, Addictive
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