The Association between Problematic Internet use and Sleep disturbances in Adolescents and Young Adults: A Systematic Review of Observational Studies
Vaishali N. Hegde, Srinivas Kosgi, Manisha Shrivastava, Shweta Mishra, Roshan F. Sutar, Amit AgrawalAbstract
Background/Objectives:
Problematic Internet Use (PIU) is a common condition that is more frequently associated with sleep disturbances and mental health problems, a subject that needs immediate attention.
Methods:
The PRISMA guidelines are used to conduct the current review using different databases, including PubMed, Scopus, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, and Science Direct. The Population Exposure and Outcome framework where population included adolescents and young adults in average age of 10–30 years from school, college, and university; the Exposure was to measure the PIU, social media dependence, and gaming-related problems, and the outcome were to look for poor sleep disturbances as the primary outcome. The presence of psychological symptoms as secondary outcomes.
Results:
Twenty cross-sectional studies were reviewed including one prospective study with 13723 cohorts. Sociodemographic age composition of 8 studies had 13–17 years and 13 studies had young adults 18–30 years of which 46%–60% were male across the studies. Prevalence of internet addiction was observed in 54% with poor sleep quality in the range of 26.7%–55%. Eleven studies reported psychological symptoms with PIU and sleep disturbances. Several studies reported moderate to strong links between PIU and psychological symptoms (depression and anxiety).
Conclusions:
Systematic reviews demonstrate a consistent association of sleep disturbances with emotional problems among problematic internet users even after adjusting key confounders prompting to promote digital well-being by routine screening and teaching brief sleep hygiene in the targeted population.