CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

From first mass-produced telephones, radios and televisions up to the smartphones,

tablets, laptops, and other electronics, recent developments in the technological world have

immensely changed the human communication and even the lifestyle of the mass public.

It revolutionized almost all aspects of our lives - how we deal with work, how we innovate

things, how we socialize, how we entertain ourselves, and how we gather information.

Through these electronic devices, what was hard to finish in the past can now be easily

done and what was impossible to experience can now be witnessed by almost all people

from all walks of life. And just like everything else, indulging in so much use of these

devices has numerous downsides too. If you think that these drawbacks only affect one's

physical health, better think again.

It is not distant in our minds anymore that technology plays a pivotal role in the

education sector. It is a great help to a student's academic prerequisites and extra-curricular

conditions in a way that it turns the long-hour find in the library a walk in the park now

through the aid of various electronic devices. It makes the heavy load of students bearable

today in one click. Indeed, we have come a long way in terms of harnessing ourselves with

these devices in to achieving something. But along with these advantages are the alarming

disadvantages that have grown painfully evident before our very eyes. Excessive use of

smartphones has spawned drawbacks which span from manipulation of students to become
social recluses, deviation from their lifestyles and the most lamentable reality is the

troubling deterioration of their over-all mental health.

In this study, the researchers aim to know the concrete effects of the prolonged

exposure to smartphones on the mental health of Grade 12 Senior High School students in

Pangasinan National High School. To come up with the desired output, the researchers will

choose 50 students, 10 coming from each strand, who have smartphones and access to the

internet who will serve as the respondents of the study. Each respondent will be provided

with an interview questionnaire comprising of various kinds of questions that are sufficient

enough for the researchers to assess and apprehend his or her behavior.
CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK

This research entitled “The Mental Health Effects of Prolonged Exposure to

Smartphones on Grade 12 Senior High School Students of Pangasinan National High

School” will be more understandable using this paradigm:

Input Process

Determining the causes of prolonged Research

exposure to smartphones.
Process

Input
Survey Questionnaire

Early symptoms that are observed or

Process
felt by the student who is over

exposed to his or her smartphone. Analysis

Output

The Mental Health Effects of Prolonged Exposure to

Smartphones on Grade 12 Senior High School Students of

Pangasinan National High School

Figure 1.1 Input – Process – Output (I-P-O) Model

 This study aims to determine the effects of prolonged exposure to smartphones on

Grade 12 SHS students. The researchers will study about the possible mental health issues

that can be developed due to prolonged exposure to smartphones. The researchers will also

determine the early symptoms noticed or felt by the students with developing mental health

issue.

The researchers will conduct their study by gathering information about the effects

of smartphones to a student’s mental health. The researchers will also conduct a survey or

an interview to their selected respondents by giving them a questionnaire.

The expected outcome of this research is to find out the mental health effects of

prolonged exposure to smartphones on Grade 12 SHS students of Pangasinan National

High School.

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

The effects of continuously evolving technology in smartphones on the mental

health of students are known to exist but are vague and diverse. A careful study of these

mental effects is crucial to find a solution to this worldwide problem. The researchers aim

to answer the following problems:

(Qualitative) 1. How does prolonged exposure to smartphones affect a student's mental

health?
(Qualitative) 2. What are the early symptoms that leads to the development of mental health

issues due to prolonged usage of smartphones?

(Quantitative) 3. For how long should a student be exposed to his or her smartphone?

ASSUMPTIONS

The researchers have come up with the following assumptions:

1. Because of smartphones, students are more likely to have an unhealthy lifestyle

where they spend most of their time using their smartphone rather than interacting

with peers or even taking care of themselves. Students are more likely to develop

mental health problems like anxiety or depression because of the prolonged

exposure to smartphones.

2. Early signs of developing mental health issues due to prolonged usage of

smartphones are almost, if not all the time, neglected and overlooked by people.

Most students have grown to be emotionally attached to their smartphones that they

cannot live and function well without it. Their excessive desire to be with their

smartphones from time to time can lead to separation anxiety and stress. These are

further assessed through noticed irritability of the students due to insomnia and

sleep disturbances.

3. Students are advised to consume only 2 hours of their day using their smartphones

as compared to over 4 hours a day that young adults spend on their mobile devices.
 IMPORTANCE OF THE STUDY

The invention of smartphones has brought forth drastic changes in the behavior of

humans. Access to the internet, social networking sites, messaging, and video games has

made an impact on the lives of nearly everyone who owns a smartphone. Students are

among those groups of people who frequently use smartphones on a daily basis. About

86% of students worldwide have used smartphones in 2015 (Pearson, 2015). Information

is now much easier to obtain because of them. Tasks that required tedious processes before

can now be done more efficiently through these handheld devices.

This seemingly free and convenient access to information, however, comes with a

price. Physical health problems such as neck pain and deterioration of vision were found

to be associated with the excess use of smartphones. More importantly, mental health is

also greatly affected, especially students who use them frequently. The symptoms may be

subtle at first, but noticeable changes in behavior may be evident later on. A careful study

to find the link between smartphone usage and mental health of students is mandatory in

order to find out the possible mental health problems students could develop.

A method has been proposed by studying the relationship of excessive use of

smartphones to sleep deprivation/sleep quality, depression, and anxiety in students

(Demirci et al., 2015). Exploration of more equally important aspects of mental health in

students is an interesting topic of research since it may aid in finding the root cause of

developing mental health issues associated with smartphone usage and how it affects a

student’s performance in school or classroom activities.

DEFINITION OF TERMS

Mental Health. Mental health is the mental stability that a student has to have to be able

to concentrate and participate in any school or classroom activities.

Mental Health Issues. Mental health issues are conditions wherein mental health

deteriorates due to various factors, one of which is the prolonged exposure to smartphones.

Smartphone. A smartphone is a mobile device which is capable of accessing the internet.

Grade 12 Students. The grade 12 students are the selected respondents for the study.

Senior High School. Senior High School (SHS) is the additional 2 years in high school

because of the new K-12 curriculum. This is where the respondents are selected for the

study.

Pangasinan National High School. Pangasinan National High School (PNHS) is where

the researchers will conduct their study.

School Days. Regular school days are when the students are in school for at least 8 hours

on weekdays.

Non-School Days. Non-school days are when the students are not in school because it’s

the weekend, a holiday, or classes are suspended.

SCOPE AND LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

This research focuses on the mental health effects of prolonged exposure to

smartphones on Grade 12 SHS students of Pangasinan National High School. The

researchers will study about the correlation of excessive smartphone usage and declining

mental health on Grade 12 students. Moreover, the research is set during school days. So,

the research will only cover the mental health effects of prolonged exposure to smartphones

on grade 12 SHS students of Pangasinan National High School during school days.

The researchers will gather data on fifty (50) students of Pangasinan National High

School by giving them a questionnaire. These questionnaires contain a set of questions that

are related on the topic of the research. The researchers will only select Grade 12 SHS

students who have smartphones and internet access as respondents for the study.

Students who do not own a smartphone nor has internet access will not be included

in this study. The researchers will mainly focus on the mental health effects, and will not

further discuss any side effects it can cause to the student to his or her environment,

relationships, etc. Lastly, the study will no longer explore the mental health effects of

prolonged exposure to smartphones on grade 12 SHS students of PNHS during vacation or

non-school days because the researchers believe that there are more factors that will

contribute to the development and worsening of a mental health issue and an another study

is needed to fully understand this research problem. The researchers simply do not have

time to spend on this kind of study.