Background: The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has led to remarkably challenging public health and social measures; this has constrained face to face social interaction.³ The lack of customary social culture has been particularly difficult on adolescents, leading to an increase in the digital transformation of socialization during this era. ² This has primarily been done with online entertainment and social media. According to a report from Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago, 63% of parents reported that their teens have significantly increased their social media usage since the pandemic has begun.⁸ High school students, who would naturally be quite social during the academic year, in and outside of school, have unfortunately been spending excessive amounts of time in front of various devices; such as tablets, smart phones, and personal computers. ² As a result of the overconsumption of digital technology, there has been an indirect effect on sleep hygiene; causing a detrimental effect on mental and physical wellbeing.⁷ A cross-sectional online survey conducted in France during the pandemic has revealed that 73% of respondents reported poor sleep in the last 8 days, of which 54% revealed that their sleep has worsened as a result of the pandemic. ⁵ Studies revolving around adolescents aged 11 to 18 with poor sleep duration and quality was associated with conditions like obesity, low mood and anxiety; which may be a predictor of worsening health outcomes in young adulthood.¹ 

Objective: This study will analyze the use of digital technology before and during the COVID-19 pandemic, and its interaction with sleep duration and quality, and overall mental and physical wellbeing in adolescents aged 14-18 across Ontario. 

Methodology: We will be quantitatively evaluating how technology use during the COVID-19 pandemic has affected sleep patterns, outdoor exercise, and mental health amongst teens aged 14-18. This study will be disseminated virtually through an online survey; aimed at assessing technology use, sleep duration and quality, and overall mental and physical wellbeing. Additionally, we will be evaluating whether these measures have been altered due to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. This study will span over the next 8 weeks to showcase how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected sleep and the overall well-being of Canadian teenagers relative to the overconsumption of digital technology.

Conclusions: Excessive use of digital technology is associated with poor sleep outcomes in adolescents, typically resulting in decreased sleep duration, and prolonged sleep onset latency.⁶ Insufficient sleep is associated with obesity, depressive symptoms, anxiety, and reduced time spent on exercise.³ As found in a study by Guo et al., 53.7% of student participants only exercised with high intensity for merely 0 to 15 minutes each day.⁴ Moreover, it was found that around 80% of those studied have consumed an increased amount of time on devices after the pandemic begun.⁴ Results of this study can be used to bring awareness to parents and youth about the impact of technology on different aspects of health. In addition, this can help highlight key areas of concern and guide the use of interactive applications on devices, like social media, to help with the promotion of good sleep hygiene, mental and overall health as well as decrease possible detrimental effects on the well-being of adolescents.

References:

1. Brunetti, Vanessa C., et al. “Screen and Nonscreen Sedentary Behavior and Sleep in Adolescents.” Sleep Health, vol. 2, no. 4, 2016, pp. 335–340., doi:10.1016/j.sleh.2016.09.004.
2. Cauberghe, Verolien, et al. “How Adolescents Use Social Media to Cope with Feelings of Loneliness and Anxiety During COVID-19 Lockdown.” Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking, vol. 24, no. 4, 2021, pp. 250–257., doi:10.1089/cyber.2020.0478.
3. De’, Rahul, et al. “Impact of Digital Surge during Covid-19 Pandemic: A Viewpoint on Research and Practice.” International Journal of Information Management, vol. 55, 2020, p. 102171., doi:10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2020.102171.
4. Guo, Yang-feng, et al. “Physical Activity, Screen Exposure and Sleep among Students during the Pandemic of COVID-19.” Scientific Reports, vol. 11, no. 1, 2021, doi:10.1038/s41598-021-88071-4.
5. Léger, Damien, et al. “Poor Sleep Associated with Overuse of Media during the COVID-19 Lockdown.” Sleep, vol. 43, no. 10, 2020, doi:10.1093/sleep/zsaa125.
6. Mei, Xi, et al. “Sleep Problems in Excessive Technology Use among Adolescent: a Systemic Review and Meta-Analysis.” Sleep Science and Practice, vol. 2, no. 1, 2018, doi:10.1186/s41606-018-0028-9.
7. Montag, Christian, and Jon D. Elhai. “Discussing Digital Technology Overuse in Children and Adolescents during the COVID-19 Pandemic and beyond: On the Importance of Considering Affective Neuroscience Theory.” Addictive Behaviors Reports, vol. 12, 2020, p. 100313., doi:10.1016/j.abrep.2020.100313.
8. “Parenting Teens in the Age of Social Media.” Lurie Children's, www.luriechildrens.org/en/blog/social-media-parenting-statistics/