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Brain & Nervous System1,197 citations

Mobile phone use and stress, sleep disturbances, and symptoms of depression among young adults - a prospective cohort study

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Thomée S, Härenstam A, Hagberg M · 2011

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Heavy mobile phone use predicts stress, sleep problems, and depression in young adults, especially when feeling pressured to stay constantly accessible.

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Swedish researchers followed over 4,000 young adults for one year to examine whether mobile phone use patterns affect mental health. They found that heavy phone users were more likely to experience stress, sleep problems, and depression symptoms, with the strongest effects among those who felt pressured to always be accessible. The study suggests that how we use our phones psychologically matters as much as how often we use them.

Study Details

The overall aim of this study was to investigate whether there are associations between psychosocial aspects of mobile phone use and mental health symptoms in a prospective cohort of young adults.

The study group consisted of young adults 20-24 years old (n = 4156), who responded to a questionnai...

There were cross-sectional associations between high compared to low mobile phone use and stress, sl...

High frequency of mobile phone use at baseline was a risk factor for mental health outcomes at 1-year follow-up among the young adults. The risk for reporting mental health symptoms at follow-up was greatest among those who had perceived accessibility via mobile phones to be stressful. Public health prevention strategies focusing on attitudes could include information and advice, helping young adults to set limits for their own and others' accessibility.

Cite This Study
Thomée S, Härenstam A, Hagberg M (2011). Mobile phone use and stress, sleep disturbances, and symptoms of depression among young adults - a prospective cohort study BMC Public Health. 11:66, 2011.
Show BibTeX
@article{s_2011_mobile_phone_use_and_2813,
  author = {Thomée S and Härenstam A and Hagberg M},
  title = {Mobile phone use and stress, sleep disturbances, and symptoms of depression among young adults - a prospective cohort study},
  year = {2011},
  doi = {10.1186/1471-2458-11-66},
  url = {https://bmcpublichealth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1471-2458-11-66?dom=prime&src=syn},
}
DOI: 10.1186/1471-2458-11-66

Cited By (1,197 papers)

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Quick Questions About This Study

A Swedish study of over 4,000 young adults found that heavy mobile phone users were more likely to develop depression symptoms over one year. The strongest risk factor was feeling pressured to always be accessible, suggesting psychological stress from constant connectivity drives mental health impacts.
Research following young adults for one year found that heavy mobile phone use increased risk of sleep disturbances. Men who used phones heavily were particularly affected, with the study suggesting that psychological pressure to stay connected disrupts normal sleep patterns.
A prospective study found that young adults who felt stressed about mobile phone accessibility had the highest risk of developing stress, sleep problems, and depression symptoms. This accessibility stress was a stronger predictor than actual phone usage frequency.
Swedish researchers found different patterns between men and women. Heavy phone use predicted sleep problems and depression in men, while women showed stronger associations with depression symptoms and stress from phone overuse and accessibility pressure.
The study suggests that helping young adults set limits on their phone accessibility could prevent mental health issues. Researchers recommend public health strategies focusing on changing attitudes about constant connectivity rather than just reducing usage frequency.