The role of the smartphone addiction in adolescence’s mental health

In recent years, the smartphones addiction has become a relatively common phenomenon among adolescent users. The objective of this study was to investigate the role of smartphone addiction in the mental health of adolescent girls and boys.This study was performed by a causal comparative research method. The statistical population of this study was all second-grade high school students in the Mahdishahr city of Semnan. In this study, 211 students, were selected by cluster sampling from the research population. The measurement tool included the smartphone addiction inventory-short form (SPAI-SF). This tool was used to screen addicted people from non-addicts. The subjects' mental health level was assessed using the General Health Questionnaire (G.H.Q). Data were analyzed using factorial MANOVA. The results indicated non-significance of, interactive effect and significance of the main effects of two variables of smartphone addiction and gender on student mental health. The general score of mental health and physical symptoms, anxiety, and depression was lower among smartphone-addicted students than that of normal students. It was also found that the general score of mental health and physical symptoms and anxiety of female students was lower than that of male students. This result shows the harmful effects of smartphone addiction on reducing the physical and psychological health of adolescent users. Therefore, taking action to prevent smartphone addiction can prevent further physical and psychological harm to users.