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Comment and Technology

We aren't addicted to our phones and we don't need a 'digital detox'

Describing ourselves as addicted to our phones is a counterproductive way to frame our overuse of technology, argues Pete Etchells

By Pete Etchells

31 January 2024

New Scientist. Science news and long reads from expert journalists, covering developments in science, technology, health and the environment on the website and the magazine.

Simone Rotella

IF I asked you to describe the relationship you have with your phone, what would you say? For many, I have a suspicion that the word “addicted” would crop up in some way. For those of us who use digital technology with any sort of regularity, there will inevitably come a point where we think we have overdone it, and that doesn’t feel good.

But does this really mean we are addicted to our screens? I would wager that, for the vast majority of users, the answer is no. Certainly not in a clinical sense, because there is no…

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