plowunited.net – Since 2018, France has prohibited smartphone use in primary and secondary schools, aiming to improve student focus, reduce social media use. This actions prevent online bullying to Improve Student Mental Health . In early 2024, the Netherlands implemented a similar ban, followed by Hungary later that year. British lawmakers are currently debating whether to follow suit.
Policymakers argue that limiting smartphone access during school hours could help curb rising mental health issues among students. However, while research confirms a growing mental health crisis, whether phone bans contribute to meaningful improvements remains uncertain.
Mental Health Issues Among Teens Have Increased Significantly
The rise in mental health struggles among young people is well-documented. A 2021 report from the U.S. Surgeon General revealed a 40% increase in persistent feelings of hopelessness among high school students between 2009 and 2019. The number of teenagers who seriously considered suicide rose by 36% during the same period.
These findings are particularly concerning because nearly half of all mental health conditions, such as anxiety and depression. Develop during adolescence and often persist into adulthood. Many have linked this crisis to the growing availability of smartphones, but proving a direct connection remains difficult.
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Linking Smartphone Use to Mental Health: A Complex Issue
One challenge in studying smartphone effects is their varied uses. While excessive social media engagement may contribute to anxiety and depression, other smartphone activities, such as reading or solving puzzles, may have positive cognitive benefits.
A 2022 study led by Amy Orben at the University of Cambridge examined data from 17,409 participants aged 10 to 21. The findings, published in Nature Communications, revealed that increased social media use negatively impacted life satisfaction among girls aged 11 to 13 and boys aged 14 to 15. However, it remains unclear if school bans on phones effectively mitigate these risks.
School Phone Bans Alone May Not Be Enough
A recent Lancet study led by Victoria Goodyear at the University of Birmingham examined whether restricting smartphone use at school improved student mental well-being. Researchers compared schools with strict bans to those with more relaxed policies. The study found that while students who spent excessive time on their phones showed lower well-being. There was no significant difference between students in schools with and without bans.
Goodyear and her team concluded that school policies alone are not enough to address mental health concerns related to smartphone use. Further complicating research, social media companies refuse to grant independent researchers access to detailed user behavior data. This forces scientists to rely on broad metrics like screen time, which fail to distinguish between educational use and social media consumption.
For meaningful improvements in student mental health, experts suggest a broader approach, including parental guidance, digital literacy education, and better access to mental health resources.
