Smartphone Overuse from Iranian University Students’ Perspective: A Qualitative Study

Smartphone usage has increasing during recent years. Since its excessive use can have negativeconsequences, it is important to know how users use it and become dependent on it. This study was aimed atexploring how university students use their phones, how they depend on them, and the possibleconsequences of overusing them.

This study was conducted using a qualitative design and with a thematic analysis method. Datawere collected using 3 focus group discussions regarding experiences of using smartphones among 22smartphone owners who reported smartphone overuse. They were chosen through snowball sampling at aUniversity of Medical Sciences in Tehran (Iran).

Based on the analysis, the 3 categories of process usage (sub-categories: doing daily routines,information seeking, to take a picture or video, entertainment, academic work, making money, to escapereal-life, and passing the time), social usage (sub-categories: relationship with family, relationship withfriends, interact with the opposite gender, to be seen and heard, approval seeking, and free expression), anddisadvantages (sub-categories: interference with other essential activities, decreased face-to-facecommunications, overdependence, automatic use, loss of sense of time, stress, fatigue, sleep disturbances,physical inactivity, eye problems, high bills, and distraction) were developed.

In this research, participants mentioned various uses of their smartphones that enable them tomeet their personal needs and, in spite of the negative consequences of its overuse, cause them to continue touse it. Some uses seem to be affected by environmental and cultural conditions.