Does Media Literacy Make the Difference Between Young People’s Harmless and Harmful Smartphone Use?

• In Event: Potential Health Concerns Associated With Media Engagement

Abstract

The rapid diffusion of smartphones and mobile internet devices has raised public and scientific concern about harmful patterns of usage. Harmful smartphone use was conceptualized as unregulated usage that goes along with negative consequences such as stress, poor school performance, or a decreased quality of social face-to-face interactions. The present survey (N = 1470) tests the contribution of media literacy (conceptualized as awareness of possible problems with one’s own smartphone use) as resilience factor and other predictors (personal dispositions, smartphone habit strength) to harmful smartphone use of children and adolescents between 13 and 16 years old. Harmful smartphone use was predicted by habitualization and a lack of self-regulation. Less pronounced, but still notable, a critical problem awareness was negatively related to harmful usage. Findings are discussed in terms of conceptual implications and consequences for media literacy interventions.

Authors

• Alexandra Ellen Sowka, Hanover U of Music, Drama, and Media

• Dorothee Hefner, University of Mannheim

• Christoph Klimmt, Hanover U of Music, Drama, and Media