Abusive Practices, Self-regulation Strategies, and the Language of Addiction: Narratives Surrounding Problematic Smartphone Use in Southeastern Spanish Youth
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: The smartphone has become fundamental in areas, such as leisure, sociability, and intimacy, especially for young people. Its impact has led to growing concerns about its effects, in terms of a potential addictive nature. This article approaches the articulation of abuse and self-regulation practices regarding the smartphone, and the presence of addictive explanations as a framework that links such practices to a culture of addiction. For this purpose, 24 young people (between 18 and 29 years) with different socio-demographic profiles (age, gender, occupation) and levels of problematic use of digital technologies were interviewed. The results show how respondents regulate the constant influx of smartphones into their daily lives with individual strategies that attempt to balance the perceived effects of their digital practices. Their effectiveness is modulated by aspects, such as maturity, personal context, or commitment to other activities. In many cases, their self-perceptions are permeated by popularized discourses of addiction, which coexist with ironic positions regarding their agency facing the technological designs and are aligned with logics of individual responsibility. They also highlight emergent aspects, such as the link between weekend binge or nightly practices of smartphone abuse, with their own personal sphere and self-gratification.
Source: Culture Medicine and Psychiatry
Language: English
Subfield: Sociology and Political Science
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $3,090
Funder: Universidad Miguel Hernández
OpenAlex ID: W7128434671