Abstract
Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has been associated to various mental health problems and its consequences such as lock-down and social distancing were linked to various adaptations forms including increased smartphone usage. The purpose of the present study was to determine the prevalence of symptoms related to smartphone excessive use and to detect smartphone addiction symptoms related to general psychological distress. Participants were (N=260) surveyed during the first two weeks of lockdown measure. Online measures were introduced including sociodemographic background, Smartphone Addiction Scale Short Version (SAS-SV), and the Brief Symptoms Inventory (BSI). Among 260 Moroccan adults, the prevalence of excessive smartphone use was 48.4% (women: 59.6% / men: 40.4%). Withdrawal, preoccupation, simultaneous presence of withdrawal and tolerance, with or without preoccupation, were significantly more observed among female users (p=.019, p=.042, p=.023 and p=.003; respectively). Comparing excessive smartphone users to non-excessive users, GSI and all BSI dimensions, showed higher significant difference in mean scores (r ranging from .15 to .31). SAS-SV total score was positively correlated with general distress (rho=.19, p<.05), depression (rho=.27, p<.01), and paranoid ideation (rho=.20, p<.05) in excessive smartphone users. Smartphone excessive use appears strongly associated with general distress, regardless of the circumstances. The results of this work provide sufficient evidence for the implementation of psychological interventions in general population during possible lock down measures or potential quarantine for potential next pandemic waves.
Highlights
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) represents a public health emergency
Findings in the present study demonstrated that higher frequency of tolerance was observed among excessive smartphone users; while withdrawal, preoccupation, simultaneous presence of withdrawal and tolerance, with or without preoccupation were significantly more prevalent among female
Excessive smartphone users scored significantly higher in the majority of psychological distress aspects; significant relationship was reported between excessive smartphone users with general distress, depression, and paranoid ideation; whilst, more associations were noted with female excessive users’ group
Summary
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) represents a public health emergency. The disease speared afterwards worldwide, leading the World Health Organization (WHO) to classify the disease as pandemic on March 2020 [1]. This situation leads different government globally to establish response to crisis and suggested steps to limit population disease transmission. Among these recommendations, the limited access to public transportations [2], governmental, social, religious, and entertainment related facilities (e.g., gyms, museums, cinemas, sport stadiums) [3]. The monitoring news on Covid-19 was recorder into “not following”, “following once a day”, “following two to three times a day” and “following instantly”
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