Prevalence and Determinants of Smartphone Addiction among Undergraduate Students in a Tertiary Educational Institution, Nigeria

Abstract

Objective: This study assessed Smartphone addiction and its determinants among University undergraduates, with a view to raising  awareness on this emerging form of addiction.

Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study design was utilized for this study, involving the administration of 442 pretested structured  questionnaires adapted from the Smartphone addiction scale questionnaire (SASQ) to undergraduate students of the University in Benin,  Benin City, Edo State. Data collected was sorted for completeness, coded and analysed using IBM SPSS version 22.0 statistical  software with statistical significance set at p<0.05.

Results: The mean age of respondents studied was 21.24 ±3.59 years. Majority of the respondents had good knowledge of Smartphone  addiction 334 (75.6%) while 418 (94.6%) had positive attitude towards Smartphone addiction with the prevalence of Smartphone addiction identified at 389 (88.0%) among respondents. Marital status of the respondents was a significant predictor for Smartphone addiction  among the respondents (OR=5.809; p=0.016) 

Conclusion: This study identified a high prevalence of Smartphone addiction among  university undergraduates. There is a need for continuous stakeholder engagement and sensitization of the study population on the  dangers associated with excessive smart phones use and need to consciously curb usage under risky situations.