The levels of addiction to smartphones among Sultan Qaboos University students and its relationships with some variables

Abstract

The study aimed at revealing the levels of smartphone addiction among students of Sultan Qaboos University and its relationship to some variables. The study used the descriptive approach. A questionnaire on smartphone addiction has been applied on a stratified random sample of 849 students, 48.8% represented the males, and 51.2% were females. In addition, interviews were conducted to support the quantitative data collected through the questionnaire. The results of the study showed that the percentage of smartphone addiction among university students is 33.1%, and ignoring the harmful effects of the smartphone was one of the most common symptoms among students. The results indicated that there were statistically significant differences between university students in smartphone addiction according to sex, study discipline and family income. There is also a statistically significant relationship between addiction and academic achievement.