The more time kids spend on phones, the worse their mental health... but bans in schools alone won’t help: Expert

The first, written by a broad team of authors and published in The Lancet, investigates the impact of mobile phone policies in schools on students’ mental health, academic performance, physical activity and sleep, drawing on data from over 1,200 adolescents aged 12–15 years across the UK. The second article, written by six authors in The British Medical Journal, focuses on strategies to support the development of healthy technology use among young people.

Apoorva Mittal spoke to Goodyear on Zoom about the findings and their implications in a world where digital devices are deeply woven into the lives of young people, and at a time when Australia has introduced a law banning social media for minors and shows like Netflix’s Adolescence are highlighting the negative impacts of these platforms on young adults. Edited excerpts:

What inspired you to undertake the study on phone use in schools and its impact on adolescents?
When we started the study, we were seeing growing concerns about adolescent mental health—especially around increased anxiety and lower well-being. At the same time, there was a noticeable rise in smartphone ownership and social media use among teenagers. Many discussions were linking the two, but the evidence was inconsistent. Meanwhile, several countries were starting to consider or implement school phone bans or delay smartphone access for adolescents. We wanted to look at whether these bans were making a difference.

What have you observed on the use of technology by adolescents?
Adolescents use phones for all sorts of things—accessing information, playing games, staying connected with friends. But they are also spending a lot of time on these platforms throughout the day.

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