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Article
Combatting digital addiction: Current approaches and future directions
Technology in Society
  • Deniz Cemiloglu, Bournemouth University
  • Mohamed Basel Almourad, Zayed University
  • John McAlaney, Bournemouth University
  • Raian Ali, Hamad Bin Khalifa University, College of Science and Engineering
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
2-1-2022
Abstract

In recent years, the notion of digital addiction has become popular. Calls for solutions to combat it, especially in adolescents, are on the rise. Whilst there remains debate on the status of this phenomenon as a diagnosable mental health condition; there is a need for prevention and intervention approaches that encourage individuals to have more control over their digital usage. This narrative review examines digital addiction countermeasures proposed in the last ten years. By countermeasures, we mean strategies and techniques for prevention, harm reduction, and intervention towards addictive digital behaviours. We include studies published in peer-reviewed journals between 2010 and 2021 and based on empirical evidence. In total, 87 studies were included in the review. The findings show that the main countermeasures could be grouped under four categories: psycho-social, software mediated, pharmacological, and combined. Overall, it has been shown that the proposed countermeasures were effective in reducing addictive digital use. However, a general statement on the efficacy of proposed countermeasures cannot be made due to inconsistent conceptualisation of digital addiction and methodological weaknesses. Accordingly, this review highlights issues that need to be addressed in future studies.

Publisher
Elsevier BV
Keywords
  • Behaviour change,
  • Digital addiction,
  • Harm reduction,
  • Intervention,
  • Prevention
Scopus ID

85120467234

Creative Commons License
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
Indexed in Scopus
Yes
Open Access
Yes
Open Access Type
Hybrid: This publication is openly available in a subscription-based journal/series
Citation Information
Deniz Cemiloglu, Mohamed Basel Almourad, John McAlaney and Raian Ali. "Combatting digital addiction: Current approaches and future directions" Technology in Society Vol. 68 (2022) ISSN: <p><a href="https://v2.sherpa.ac.uk/id/publication/issn/0160-791X" target="_blank">0160-791X</a></p>
Available at: http://works.bepress.com/mohamedbasel-almourad/18/