Dispelling the myths of mobile devices before sleeping

As most people are aware there are several warnings and thoughts about the overuse of mobile devices before going to bed.

So how many of us can relate to this new research from Flinders University in Adelaide, which has shown that using a mobile device can be a helpful distraction from negative thoughts positively affecting teenagers’ ability to get to sleep? 

However, the feedback from more than 600 teenagers from ages 12 to 18 at South Australian schools between June and September 2019 has led the international research group to point to a more nuanced view on using the wide range of mobile content – led by Youtube, music apps, Instagram and Snapchat – before young people’s bedtime.

Respondents were asked which app was likely to distract them from any negative or distressing thoughts – from messaging, phone calls, Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat, Twitter, Youtube, Reddit, Tumblr and the Spotify/iTunes/Apple Music, Netflix/Stan, Viber/WhatsApp, gaming app, audiobook or ‘other’. 

Participants reported multiple technology preferences including mobile phone, iPad, laptop, desktop computer, iPod/MP3 player, television, gaming console or ‘other’. Researchers note the recent rise in popularity of TikTok and other apps in a rapidly changing field.

Dr Serena Bauducco, a visiting postdoctoral researcher from Örebro University, Sweden and lead corresponding author said, “many teenagers struggle with a racing mind when sleep doesn’t come easily,” 

“This study shows that many adolescents use technology to distract themselves from negative thoughts, which may help them manage the sleep-onset process. Thus, distraction may be one mechanism explaining how sleep affects technology use, rather than vice-versa,” the study concludes.

The majority of 631 adolescents surveyed used technology as a distraction from negative or distressing thoughts, with 23.6% answering “yes” and 38.4% “sometimes,” according to the study published in the journal Sleep Advances (Oxford Academic).

However, the study did reveal a higher tendency of app use among the young people with existing sleep problems compared to those not reporting a sleep problem, leading researchers to caution that other solutions are needed to help teenagers to fall asleep.

Passive entertainment, via music apps or Youtube video clips, or interacting with peers via Instagram or Snapchat were considered the most popular distractions. 

First author of the study, Flinders University psychology graduate Ms Alexandra Daniels, says the complex relationship between sleep and technology is illustrated by a tendency for some adolescents with sleep problems to more frequently use devices before bed.