Most married Indians feel excessive smartphone use is hurting their relationship: Study

The excessive usage of smartphone is hurting the relationship of married couples in India. This is according to a study “Switch off” conducted by smart device maker Vivo along with Cybermedia Research.

The findings of the study, which is on “Smartphones and their impact on human relationships 2022”, were unveiled on Monday (December 12).

The study found that 67 per cent of people confessed to being on their phones even while they are spending time with their spouse. And, 89 per cent of respondents said they spend less time engaging in relaxed conversation with their spouse than possible.

The study has been conducted based on a survey of 1,000 consumers across Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Ahmedabad and Pune.

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Pertinently, the findings also shows that smartphone users agree that in-person engagements are more relaxing and they spend less time doing the same. And, what is significant is that nearly 84 per cent of the respondents recognise this kind of behaviour and want to change and spend more time with their spouse.

“People are accepting the problems and are willing to change. 88 per cent of respondents agreed that increased usage of smartphones is hurting their relationship with their spouses,” the study said.

And, 90 per cent of people want to devote more leisure time to meaningful conversations with their spouses. According to the findings, on an average, 4.7 hours are spent on a smartphone per day by respondents and this is similar across husbands and wives. Also, 73 per cent of respondents accepted that their spouse complained about their over-indulgence on the phone instead of spending time with him or her.

Interestingly, the study reveals 70 per cent of people get irritated when their spouse asks for something while they are immersed in their smartphones. According to the study, 66 per cent of people feel that excessive usage of smartphones has weakened their relationship with their spouse.

“The significance of a smartphone in today’s life is undisputed however excessive usage remains an area that the users need to be cautious of. As a responsible brand, we aim to underline the importance of spending time with our loved ones, for that is the true meaning of leisure time,” said Yogendra Sriramula, Vivo India head, brand strategy.

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It found that 69 per cent of respondents feel occasionally distracted by their smartphone, or not attentive enough to their spouse at times and 68 per cent of partners have felt guilty at some point in time for being distracted by their phone while spending time with their spouse.

The study report said that 88 per cent of respondents spend their leisure time on the smartphone, which is now a part of their behaviour, and for 90 per cent of the respondents, smartphone is the most preferred way to relax.

On an average, each smartphone user has 1.5 hours of leisure time daily. Most of them like to spend their leisure time with family. However, they carry their smartphone while spending time with family.

According to the study, the average amount of time spent on transactional conversation and relaxed chat is almost the same, which is close to two hours.

“Eighty-nine per cent of people feel the urge to reach out to their smartphone as soon as they get some free time. The study reveals that 88 per cent of respondents spend their leisure time on the smartphone, which is now a part of their behaviour,” the study said.