Phone addiction

More and more people are becoming addicted to their mobile devices. They use them everywhere and check them constantly. In restaurants, on buses, when riding motorbikes, in class. They are dependent on their phones.

A recent study found that on average, people in the UK check their phones once every 12 minutes and that increasingly, how people feel (e.g. happy, satisified, self-confident, sad) is more and more dependent on the number of 'likes' or 'followers' or 'views' they have.

Some people can suffer serious mental health problems (for example; anxiety and depression) when they are not validated on social media. Furthermore, mobile phones are a terrrible distraction because often, when using mobile phones, people are not mindful of what is happening around them. Many people are not aware of their surroundings when they are using their mobile phones.

When people use their mobile phones when they are together in social groups, this is called 'phubbing' (pronounced 'fubbing'). This is when someone in a social group is using their phone and not participating in a social activity.

In many countries, more people and businesses are trying to limit the amount of time people spend on mobile phones. Governments now recognise that for some people, mobile phone use is a dangerous addiction, similar to smoking and gambling.

Smartphone and social media companies have started recognising the dangers of phone addiction. Apple recently launched an app that helps users keep track of their phone usage.

Social media giants Facebook and Instagram are also introducing features designed to allow mobile users to see how much time they've spent on the apps and set limits on the time they are on social media.

Many organisations and businesses are also trying to help people reduce their mobile phone use. Some restaurants and cafes are requiring customers to place their phones in a small box on their table while others are banning mobile phones altogether to try to get people to connect face-to-face.

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Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the reading to complete each of the gaps in the summary.

Recent research has revealed that many people are becoming emotionally 1__________ on their mobile devices. Mobile phone addiction can not only cause mental stress but also lead to people becoming less conscious of their 2__________; for example when users are phubbing and not joining in to 3________. Attempts to address the addiction problem include new apps and features which allow consumers to 4 __________ of time spent on phones and limit their usage. Some retailers are either restricting or 5__________ completely the use of mobile phones on their premises.

Enter you details below to complete the summary and test your vocabulary knowledge.