Teens agree less cell use, better grades

Two out of three teenagers think that if they used their mobile phones less they would perform better at school, according to the finds of a survey of 2,291 high school students and graduates by the Poukamisas Educational Center, seeking to assess their relationship with their devices and the impact in and out of school.

As many teens communicate with their friends primarily through mobile messaging, the survey showed that overuse weakens their social skills, resulting in poor interpersonal relationships.

More specifically, four out of 10 students (39%) said they use their cell phones “often to very often.” 

One in three (31.2% of students) said they use their mobile phone more than they would like to. In contrast, most said that they do not experience musculoskeletal problems or sleep disturbance from using their mobile phone, nor do they feel very tired because of using it.

One in two have little to no difficulty concentrating during study because of their phone, with 63.5% saying that reducing its use would have a positive effect on their performance. More than half (53.2%) would agree with an initiative to reduce mobile phone use while 41.8% believe that their performance in lessons would improve if the mobile phone was not always next to them.

The grade which students attend – given the different requirements of junior high compared to senior high, where preparation for the national exams is intensive – seems to be significantly related to the degree of mobile phone use. 

Senior high school students and graduate students seem to experience a greater impact on their daily life from mobile phone use compared to junior high school students. What’s more, a girl’s daily life compared to that of boys seems to be more negatively affected by mobile phone use.