The association of smartphone addiction, sleep quality and perceived stress amongst Jordanian dental students

Abstract

Introduction Smartphone addiction has been associated with sleeping problems and psychological anxiety. However, little is known about the association of smartphone addiction, sleep quality and perceived stress amongst university students particularly in dentistry. This study investigated the association of these variables amongst dental students in a Jordanian dental faculty. Materials and methods A sample of 420 undergraduate dental students enrolled for academic year 2017/2018 at the Jordan University of Science and Technology participated in this study. They were given a set of self‐administered questionnaires which consisted of questions regarding demographic information, characteristics of smartphone use, assessment of smartphone addiction, sleep quality as well as perceived stress. Results The mean Smartphone Addiction Scale (SAS) score amongst Jordanian dental students was high (109.9 ± 23.8). The correlation between SAS and Global Pittsburg Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) score was significant (r = 0.137, P =0.005) indicating that the higher the smartphone addiction level, the poorer the quality of sleep. Similarly, a significant correlation was found between Perceived Stress Scale‐10 (PSS‐10) score and Global PSQI score (r = 0.348, P < 0.001) which implied that students who have higher perceived stress experienced poorer sleep quality. Year 3 students (clinical year), smartphone addiction and perceived stress were determinants of sleep quality. Conclusions Dental students who have high levels of smartphone addiction or high perceived stress levels experienced poor sleep quality. Identifying smartphone addicts amongst students as well as stressors are imperative measures to allow timely assistance and support in the form of educational campaigns, counselling, psychotherapy and stress management.

Smartphone Addiction Factors Effecting University Student Performance

“…Studies show that smart phone addiction has a profound impact on individual's personality traits and problem-solving ability among university students (Ran, 2022). Studies also indicate that it also negatively affects university students' sleep quality and perceived stress (Sanusi, Al-Batayneh, Khader & Saddki, 2022). The studies also reveal that there is a close nexus between smartphone addiction and mental health issues among university students (Lee et al, 2014).…”

Association between problematic use of smartphones and mental health in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region: a systematic review

“…Other sociodemographic characteristics and PSU, such as income, type of residence, and educational level, have yielded mixed results in epidemiological studies. Concerning the association between PSU and education level, four studies reported that PSU was signi cantly associated with education level (23,35,42,44); nine other studies found no relationship between PSU and education level (19,21,25,26,30,33,37,38,45).…”

“…Regarding the relationship between stress and sociodemographic variables, Omani male students were more stressed than females, and students living offcampus were more stressed than those living on campus (21). According to the ndings of two studies, Kuwaiti and Jordanian female students were more stressed than males (22,25). A single study found no correlation between perceived stress and gender or academic performance (41).…”

“…Despite this, only a single study considered that the daily time spent using a mobile phone was a signi cant predictor of PSU (45). Some studies have highlighted other time modalities affecting smartphone use, such as checking smartphones at night (19,51), higher frequency of mobile phone use during the day, the shorter time until rst mobile phone usage in the morning (25,48), the number of hours per session using smartphone (22), and younger age of owning or rst use of the smartphone, which was also signi cantly correlated with PSU (23,30,35).…”

“…Variety of smartphone usage: The most stated reasons for smartphone use in the studies included in this review were entertainment, calling, and texting (23,30,50). The majority of features used by individuals were social networking sites and messaging functions (20,25,30,48,49). Therefore, the PSU tended to be higher when smartphones were used for social media, chatting, or gaming (23,27,30,47,48).…”