ARE MILLENNIAL MOTHERS ADDICTED TO SMARTPHONES DURING A PANDEMIC: STUDY IN MALAYSIA AND INDONESIA

Abstract

Smartphones are increasing, especially during a pandemic where lockdown and distance are enforced in several countries. Smartphones have become more fully functional because they are used to keep in touch or entertain. We conducted a study on millennial mothers who had early childhood. A total of 169 millennial mothers were obtained from Malaysia and Indonesia during the pandemic Covid-19. This study uses the Smartphone Addiction Inventory (SPAI) by (Y. H. Lin et al., 2014). The measuring instrument is based on four factors: compulsive behavior, functional impairments, and withdrawals, modified from the Indonesian and Malay versions. The results show that the addiction of millennial mothers to smartphone use is more in the high category. Besides that, we linked the length of time using smartphones with several demographics, such as the number of children, employment status, and education. Implications and findings are discussed in detail.