Smartphone Use, Flow and Wellbeing: A Case of Jekyll and Hyde
Document Type
Article
Publication Title
Computers in Human Behavior
Publication Date
1-1-2023
Abstract/ Summary
This research advances our understanding of the nuanced relationship between smartphone use and wellbeing. Two studies reveal new ways in which smartphone use can be positively related to wellbeing and they also explain why those same smartphone functions can be harmful for other users. We juxtapose two different forms of smartphone use – social media applications ‘apps’ and productivity-related apps (e.g. email, notes). Our results demonstrate that both forms of smartphone use can be positively related to wellbeing, but it depends on the age of the user. Time spent on productivity apps was positively related to wellbeing amongst Generation Z (<24 years old) but had a non-linear, cubic relationship for older participants, becoming negative after a moderate amount of use. The opposite was the case for time spent on social media; it had a negative relationship with wellbeing amongst Generation Z, but a positive one amongst older users. Our research reveals that flow is the underlying mechanism driving the nuanced relationship between smartphone use and wellbeing. In particular, the determining factor was whether screen time elicited or thwarted the fluency aspect of flow, which is an effortless feeling of full control as one demonstrates mastery.