Problematic Use of Smartphones and Social Media on Sleep Quality of High School Students in Mexico City

Abstract

Background: Smartphones, internet access, and social media represent a new form of problematic behavior and can affect how teens sleep. Methods: A cross-sectional design was employed to examine the prevalence and association of problematic internet use and problematic smartphone use with sleep quality in a non-probability sample of 190 high school students in Mexico. The internet-related experiences questionnaire (IREQ), the mobile-related experiences questionnaire (MREQ), and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) were used. Results: The study revealed that 66% of participants exhibited some form of problematic internet use, primarily in the form of social media use; 68% had some form of problematic smartphone use, and 84% reported poor sleep quality. The PSQI score was most accurately predicted by problematic smartphone use (MREQ), followed by enrollment in the morning school shift, participation in sports, the father’s education level, and knowledge that “smartphone use disturbs sleep”, which together explained 23% of the variation in sleep quality. Conclusions: Excessive smartphone use may negatively affect sleep quality in adolescents. We recommended that interventions be implemented to educate adolescents about appropriate and healthy use of technology, in parallel with the promotion of preventive sleep habits.