Lim, Poh Khuen (2019) Smartphone addiction and depression: Prevalence, sociodemographic factors and its association with severity of depression / Lim Poh Khuen. Masters thesis, Universiti Malaya.
Abstract
The recent increase in smartphone usage is a worldwide phenomenon, bringing about a stronger reason for researches to focus on its potential benefits and hazards on the health of the population. Prior studies have found negative effects on both physical and psychological health with increased amount of smartphone use. Literature has revealed that there is a bidirectional relationship between smartphone addiction and depression, with most studies concluding the detrimental effect of excessive smartphone usage on mental health. The aim of this study is to determine the prevalence of smartphone addiction among depressive patients, and to investigate the associated socio-demographic factors related between severity of depression and smartphone addiction. It also aims to investigate the relationship between smartphone addiction and severity of depression. This is a cross-sectional research conducted among depressive patients in the Outpatient Psychiatry Clinic, University Malaya Medical Centre (UMMC). Subjects who met the inclusion and exclusion criteria were included into the study. Participants were interviewed using the clinician rated Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (M.I.N.I) and Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS). They were also given self-reported questionnaires which included a socio-demographic information, the Smartphone Addiction Scale (SAS), and Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS). Ethical approval was obtained from the UMMC Medical Research Ethics Committee (MREC ID No: 201866-6365). The results were analysed using iv Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 23. A total of 140 subjects were recruited into this study. The prevalence of smartphone addiction among depressive patients was 58.6%, n = 82. The median age was 32 years old. Majority of the subjects were female (72.1%), Chinese race (48.6%), non-married (66.5%), non-professional (38.6%), had university educational level (52.9%), and with monthly household income of above RM5000 (30.7%). On smartphone usage, 40.7% of subjects spent more than 6 hours per day. Analysis of covariate (ANCOVA) showed that the time spent on smartphone was significantly associated with smartphone addiction (p<0.001) after adjusting for confounders. However, there is no relationship between smartphone addiction and severity of depression. No association was found between smartphone addiction and the severity of depression. The negative association between smartphone addiction and depression severity allows clinicians to be more confident in introducing smartphone applications to aid in the monitoring and treatment of depression. As anyone may develop smartphone addiction regardless of socio-demographic factors, this study calls for more interventions in the future to reduce smartphone addiction among depressive patients and the general population
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