Habits vs. Addictions
Researchers are divided on whether habitual screen use should be classified as an addiction. It is undeniable that more and more people exhibit addictive behaviours towards their smartphones, including secrecy about or under-estimation of time spent on screens, habitual screen use, and withdrawal symptoms. However, the actual changes that occur in our brains when we spend our day on screens are still relatively unknown. A lot of the addictive behaviour we exhibit around screens could also be a product of the apps themselves themselves, and not our own brains – meaning that if the screens are removed, we can very quickly revert to our old behaviours.
Regardless of their classification as an addiction, screens are habit-forming, and these habits can have major impacts on your life. Consider the person who drinks socially every night but is not an alcoholic: they do not depend on the alcohol, and they have gone weeks without alcohol before. Yet, due to their higher rates of alcohol consumption, they still develop kidney problems later in life. Regardless of your perceived ability to ‘stop any time you want’, most people continue to rack up seven years of screen time. So, what do you do to break the habit? And what steps can you take to stop yourself from developing addictive behaviour?
First, you can monitor your screen time, or better yet, get someone else to monitor it for you. We are notoriously bad at monitoring our screen use, so engage in a pact with a colleague or family member and work to monitor screen use together. See our list of small changes for some ideas to regulate yourself and others.
It is also well-known that poor personal relationships are characteristic of addicts, and that one of the best ways to cure or prevent addiction is to develop close relationships. In today’s removed world, we are more devoid of these relationships than ever before. Working to foster relationships without smartphone interaction will help you self-regulate, prevent addictive behaviour, and make you a happier person in general. For more information on relationships and addiction, watch this TED talk.
Finally, we can all relate to the instinct to check our phones when we are bored or uncomfortable. Plan in advance for the additional free time you will have when you put down the phone. Join a book club, volunteer to coach your kid’s soccer team, or find an intramural league in your neighbourhood. If you’re unsure of what hobby to pursue, check out this article: https://hobbylark.com/misc/How-to-Choose-a-Hobby or this quiz: https://gamequitters.com/hobby-tool/. Once your days start to fill up, you’ll find that the desire to check your phone diminishes naturally.
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