Researchers at Semmelweis University studied smartphone habits among adults aged 18 to 35, identifying three distinct usage patterns: social communication, light mixed use, and heavy passive content consumption. About one third of participants fell into the heavy process group, spending four to five hours or more daily scrolling through feeds and videos rather than interacting directly with others.
Cognitive testing showed that heavy passive users performed worse on memory and attention tasks than expected for their age, and they also reported poorer sleep and a stronger urge to check their phones impulsively. The researchers emphasize that personality traits like neuroticism were not the main driver; instead, low self-control and a strong fear of missing out were more closely associated with problematic use.
Total screen time was more strongly tied to physical consequences, particularly forward head posture from looking down at phones. This "text neck" position can strain neck joints and alter sensory signals related to balance. The authors caution that the findings do not prove scrolling directly causes these cognitive differences, but they suggest that how people use their phones may matter as much as how long they use them. The study was published in Acta Psychologica.