An unhealthy addiction to smartphones

Hi, my name is André, and I am an addict.

Addicted to my smartphone, that is, and I would argue that the majority of us have developed a dependence on our smartphones, as well.

For those of you who disagree, I challenge you to attend an IU men’s basketball game and describe the actions of your peers during a timeout.

When the referee blows the whistle, the players get a chance to rest, and the student section gets a chance to check their phones.

This phenomenon occurs without fail.

Some might argue coincidence. I would argue dependence.

A sea of iPhone screens being turned in unison can be witnessed, the warm glow of the retina display illuminating the stooped faces of the addicts.

Each junkie chasing his or her next high from that text, that notification, that tweet.

Here we are surrounded by our friends and colleagues, enjoying the best college basketball team in the country trounce its current opponent, and we are glued to our phones.

We sit in our individual seats, and instead of communicating with the friends right beside us, we feel that irresistible urge to pull out our phones and communicate with those who are nowhere to be seen.

We do this almost unconsciously, as it has simply become a habit, the norm.

Smartphones have become so ingrained in our society that they have begun to affect the way we live.

We make decisions not for ourselves but based on the needs of our devices. We position ourselves in order to be closer to an outlet.

We direct ourselves to areas where we have better cell, data and Wi-Fi reception.

We go to great measures to ensure the effectiveness and longevity of our devices and may even inconvenience ourselves in the process.

However, these inconveniences are but a meager price to pay for the service our devices provide. That constant contact we so desperately desire is worth the trouble — it sustains our high.  

Like many other drugs, our smartphones and other technological devices are not inherently bad. It is our chronic use of them that is to blame.

When was the last time you left your house without your phone of your own accord?

I would suspect quite some time, and I don’t blame you. We live in a society where constant contact is considered more of an expectation than a privilege.

Our smartphones have become our lifeline to society, a drug necessary to even be relevant in the modern world.

Without them, we are lost — disconnected from society. Or worse, from the Internet.

­— andsamps@indiana.edu