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Heavy, content-focused smartphone use was associated with poorer attention and memory-task performance and poorer sleep in a study of students aged 18 to 35. The findings do not show that scrolling causes those problems, and they suggest that what people do on their phones may matter alongside how long they use them.
What the study found about phone use and cognition
Semmelweis University reported on January 21, 2026, that students who mainly consumed phone content rather than communicating directly performed worse on attention and memory tasks than expected for their age. They also reported poorer sleep, a stronger desire for continuous stimulation, and more difficulty resisting the urge to check their phones or act immediately. The university described about one third of participants as heavy-process users, but did not publish the denominator alongside that share. Read the university’s report.
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The study does not establish that scrolling damaged participants’ memory or attention. The accessible reports do not provide detailed effect estimates, confidence intervals, the sample size, or the specific cognitive tests, so they cannot show how large the differences were or how they might translate into daily life. ScienceDaily’s October 12, 2026 report likewise cautions against treating the findings as proof of causation. Read the ScienceDaily report.
How the researchers grouped smartphone habits
Participants were students aged 18 to 35. They completed online questionnaires about their smartphone activity, the kinds of things they did on their phones, whether phone use caused them to miss planned tasks, and whether they thought about their phones when they were not using them. The researchers also assessed neuroticism, self-control, and fear of missing out, or FoMO. The report describes three patterns:
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- Pure social: Mainly using a phone to communicate and maintain social connections.
- Light process: A mixture of social activity, news, entertainment, and passive scrolling, for less than four to five hours a day.
- Heavy process: Mainly consuming content instead of communicating directly, and using a phone for four to five hours or more per day.
These are study group descriptions, not a consumer rating system or a universal threshold for harm. The report does not show that every person who crosses a particular number of hours will have cognitive or sleep problems.
Why FoMO and self-control matter
The researchers’ account links problematic smartphone use with weak self-control and FoMO. That is not the same as saying that anxiety, stress, depression, or other negative emotions automatically make someone addicted to a phone. Lead researcher Dr. Johanna Takács said personality alone, including a high level of neuroticism, does not explain problematic use; behavioral control and fear of missing out also matter.
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The underlying paper is by Johanna Takács and Beáta Seregély, “Parallel mediation of FoMO and self-control on the relationship between problematic smartphone use and neuroticism, at-risk group’s characteristics among young adults,” published in Acta Psychologica in 2025, volume 260, article 105608, DOI 10.1016/j.actpsy.2025.105608. The university’s accessible report does not provide enough methodological detail to determine the strength or direction of every relationship, so the findings should not be used to diagnose an individual.
Scrolling, sleep, and physical strain are different concerns
The university distinguishes cognitive associations linked with the kind of phone use from physical concerns it discusses in relation to duration and posture. Its report describes looking down at a phone held around waist or chest height as a forward-head posture, sometimes called “text neck,” which may put extra strain on the neck. It also discusses possible effects on balance when that posture is maintained for long periods. The accessible material does not report effect sizes or detailed measurement results for these physical outcomes; it is not evidence that a specific amount of phone use will cause neck pain or balance problems.
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Sleep is another reported association: heavy-process users said they slept worse. The report does not establish that scrolling was the cause, nor does it quantify the size of the difference.
Practical ways to change phone habits
Semmelweis University says the aim is not to ban phones. It suggests changes intended to reduce unnecessary checking and pressure to stay constantly connected. The study did not test these suggestions as treatments or prove that they prevent cognitive, sleep, or physical problems.
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- Reduce prompts: Turn off notifications that are not useful, so fewer alerts invite an immediate check.
- Set social-media limits: Use the phone’s built-in app or screen-time controls to choose a daily limit that fits your routine.
- Keep phones out of the bedtime routine: Avoid using a phone before bed, as the university recommends; the study did not test a particular cutoff time.
- Notice the posture: Take breaks from prolonged downward-looking use and hold the phone higher when practical. An adjustable stand is an optional convenience, not a study-tested treatment or proven prevention.
- Make room for offline activity: The university recommends physical activity and supporting self-control, while reducing pressure to remain connected.
What the findings can—and cannot—tell phone users
The results are most relevant to the student age range studied, 18 to 35, and should not automatically be generalized to children, older adults, or all smartphone users. The accessible university and ScienceDaily accounts do not give the participant count, recruitment details, study design terminology, detailed test instruments, or numerical effect estimates. They therefore support a cautious conclusion: content-heavy, prolonged use was associated with several less favorable outcomes in this student sample, but the reports cannot establish that scrolling caused them or identify a precise safe-use limit.
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