Everyone Worries They're On Their Phone Too Much, According to Pew Report

Smartphone addiction is a growing problem, and many people are worried by how much time they spend staring at a screen. 

Teens and parents are especially concerned, according to a Pew Research Center report released Tuesday. Specifically, Pew surveyed 743 U.S. teens and 1,058 U.S. parents of teens, from March 7-April 10, 2018. 

So how do these Americans feel about their level of screen time? Although teens are sometimes stereotyped as clueless smartphone addicts, more than half are worried about spending too much time on the phone and have even taken steps to cut back their mobile phone use and social media use.

While two-thirds of parents are worried about their children's smartphone habits, about one-third of these adults are also dealing with tech addiction themselves, and their kids have noticed.

"Fifty one percent of teens say they often or sometimes find their parent or caregiver to be distracted by their own cellphone when they are trying to have a conversation with them," the report states.

Some lawmakers are also concerned by the amount of time teens and children spend on smartphones and social media and have called for both government and tech companies to do something about the "crisis" of technology addiction.

There are some steps that both parents and teens can take to reduce their screen time and curb their smartphone addiction.

Silencing notifications or setting the device to "Do Not Disturb" mode is a good first step to regaining some focus.

Apps like Moment for iOS and Quality Time for Android are designed to help users to determine what is eating up most of their time. Once someone has identified their scrolling traps they can reduce or eliminate them from their phone.

And if families are going to spending a lot of time on internet-connected devices, they should do it securely, using the best cybersecurity practices.