Problematic smartphone use and related factors in young patients with schizophrenia (2019)

Asia Pac Psychiatry. 2019 May 1:e12357. doi: 10.1111/appy.12357.

Lee JY1,2,3, Chung YC4, Kim SY1, Kim JM1, Shin IS1,3, Yoon JS1,3, Kim SW1,2,3.

Abstract

INTRODUCTION:

The present study aimed to examine smartphone use in young patients with schizophrenia and to explore factors that may affect the severity of problematic smartphone use.

METHODS:

A total of 148 schizophrenia patients aged 18 to 35 years completed self-administered questionnaires exploring sociodemographic characteristics; Smartphone Addiction Scale (SAS), the Big Five Inventory-10 (BFI-10), the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), and the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSES). All were also assessed using the Clinician-Rated Dimensions of Psychosis Symptom Severity (CRDPSS) Scale and the Personal and Social Performance (PSP) Scale.

RESULTS:

The mean subject age was 27.5 ± 4.5 years. No significant differences in the SAS scores occurred between gender, jobs, and level of education. The Pearson r-correlation test showed that the SAS scores were significantly positively correlated with HADS anxiety, PSS, and BFI-10 neuroticism scores; it was negatively correlated with RSES, BFI-10 agreeableness, and conscientiousness scores. In the stepwise linear regression analysis, the severity of PSU was significantly associated with both high anxiety and low agreeableness.

DISCUSSION:

Our results suggest that specific groups of patients with schizophrenia may require special care to prevent problematic smartphone use.

KEYWORDS: addiction; anxiety; personality; schizophrenia; smartphone use

PMID: 31044555

DOI: 10.1111/appy.12357