Factors Influencing the Smartphone Addiction Among Students of the North Central Province in Sri Lanka

Abstract

Technology becomes a part of the human life and it has significantly changed cultural norms of behavior of individuals. One of the popular applications of the technology is the smartphone and it has affected work of students’ behavior. Therefore, the objective of this study is to identify the factors influencing the smartphone addiction among school children of the North Central province in Sri Lanka. A well administrated questionnaire is prepared based on the previous literature with constructs of Usefulness, Loneliness, Family Income Level, Gender and Addiction to Smart Phone. 140 respondents were selected using purposive sampling technique for data collection and analysis indicates that all the independent variables positively affect the addiction to smart phone. Loneliness and gender of students is having higher impact on the addiction. The advancement of technology severs to the growth of the children’s educations, but parents have to place much attention to the use of technology by their children because addiction of smartphone would reduce their children’s academic performance. The addiction of technology such as smartphones would be reduced when students are trained to think rationally from their childhood.

Keywords: Loneliness, gender, usefulness, family income, addiction of smartphones

JEL Classification: L63, L96, O33