#Self-Awareness & Discipline: The Impact of Excessive use of

Mobile Phones to the Behavior of Teenager Students in USTP

(University Of Science and Technology of Southern Philippines) on
their Study habits and Mental Health

Tejada, Gweneth Kane C.

University of Science and Technology of

of Southern Philippines

Introduction

The shifting purpose of the cellphone started as just for talking. Gradually,
features like voicemail were added, but the main purpose was talk. Eventually, cell
phone manufacturers began to realize that they could integrate other technologies into
their phone and expand its features. The earliest smartphones let users access email,
and use the phone as a fax machine, pager, and address book.

In recent years, the purpose of the cell phone has shifted from a verbal
communication tool to a multimedia tool, often adopting the name mobile device rather
than being called a phone at all. We now use our cell phones more for surfing the web,
checking email, snapping photos, and updating our social media status than actually
placing calls.

Rapidly expanding software titles, better screen resolution, and constantly

improved interface make cell phones easier to navigate, and more fun to use. Add to
that an expanding capacity that can hold as much memory as a computer would just a
few years ago, and you can see why its an exploding market, Grullon says.

The cell phones of today are also replacing our other gadgets, such as
cameras and video cameras. When cameras were first introduced on phones, the
images were low quality and the feature was considered to just be an extra.

Now, we're seeing a very fast shift to where consumers don't even bother
carrying their point-and-shoot cameras anymore, and just use their cell phones, says
Jamie Lendino, a tech journalist and senior mobile analyst for PCMag.com.

Modern day smartphones the Apple iPhone in particular changed

everything that consumers expect from their phones. The app market has transformed
the phone into a virtual toolbox with a solution for almost every need. (Amanda Rey,
The Art Institute)
 As the purpose of cell phone changes from time to time, mobile phones are
considered a must-have among young Filipinos, with product ownership in the country
at 67%, according to a survey recently conducted by global research agency Synovate.

Carole Ann Sarthou, managing director of Synovate Philippines, said this is

not a surprise especially after the country was dubbed as the "texting capital of the
world" for its excessive use of short message services (SMS).

"Ang mga Pinoy kasi sociable at always in touch with friends (Filipinos are
very sociable and are always in touch with friends)," Sarthou told ABS-CBN News.

They are not just inseparable from their mobile phones -- young Filipinos get
in touch with a lot of people, too.

The survey showed that a typical Filipino youth has 102 contacts, way above
the average of 77.

They have the third highest number of contacts on their mobile phones,
closely following youth from Singapore (108) and Indonesia (131).

Titled 2010 Young Asians Survey, the study examined the habits of youth
across Asia. Respondents ranged from 8 to 24 years old across 11 markets including
the Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia, China, Hong Kong,
India, Thailand and Vietnam.

Last year, a similar study by Synovate showed that young Filipinos liked
using their mobile phones to play games, listen to music, watch videos and surf the
Internet.

Studies over the past years show that nearly one in four teenagers are almost
constantly online as their lives are swallowed up ever more by their mobile phones
(Mail online, 2015). In another study by the University of Haifa (2012), 94% of high
school students accessed social media on their phones during class over the past year.
The most common use of the internet in class was to access social media sites,
followed by listening to music, playing games, and sending text messages and photos.
In every class, most of the pupils use their mobile phones, and at any given moment
some of the pupils are using their mobile phones.

Not only those students get hooked into using cell phones, but this gadget also
affects their academic performance. As shown in the study of Murai (2015), excessive
use of mobile phones causes students to fare poorly in elementary, junior high and high
school, not only because it makes them lose their concentration due to lack of sleep, but
also because it apparently compromises what they have studied. Further, a research
looked into the correlation between studying enthusiasm and smartphone usage. It
found that using a mobile phone for an extended time even affects students who
habitually study a lot. That implies a lack of sleep or reduced study time as a result of
mobile phone usage is not the only way these devices affect performance at school.
The study revealed that students who spent over two hours every day both studying and
using messaging apps, especially the popular line, scored worse on a math exam than
those who spent less than 30 minutes a day but didnt use a smartphone at all.
(LESLEE B. CHOMAWIN, Doa Aurora Elementary School. AMIANAN Balita Ngayon)

And according to the study titled Awareness campaign against cell phone
radiation hazard: Case study Oman by Wafa Osmen na *, Aneesa Ali Awadh Saar,
Referrences:

The Art Institutes. The History and Evolution of Cell Phones.

Retrieved: January 22, 2015
By: Amanda Ray
Filed under: Gaming & Technology]
https://www.artinstitutes.edu/about/blog/the-history-and-evolution-of-cell-phones

ABS-CBN News. (2010). Young Pinoys inseparable From Cellphones: Survey

Posted: Aug 12 2010 06:06 PM | Updated as of Aug 13 2010 02:07 AM
Report from Pia Guttierrez, ABS-CBN News
http://news.abs-cbn.com/lifestyle/08/12/10/young-pinoys-inseparable-cellphones-survey

AMIANAN Balita Ngayon. Cellphone and its effects to Students.

Retrieved: Nov 18, 2017
By: LESLEE B. CHOMAWIN
http://www.amiananbalitangayon.com/cellphone-and-its-effects-to-students/
Supporting Details to the study:
Posted by: Manila Times on May 5, 2015
Titled: Overuse of mobile gadgets hampers students ability to study and sleep
http://www.manilatimes.net/overuse-of-mobile-gadgets-hampers-students-ability-to-
study-and-sleep/181132/