Over the last few decades, it has become nearly impossible to imagine a workspace without highly integrated technology. Ever since cell phones entered the scene, co-workers have been able to collaborate on projects, no matter where in the world they are. Digital meeting spaces have allowed companies to stay connected across countries and even continents. Although these advancements have improved productivity and connectivity, it may be time for a step back. Since the global pandemic took over the world, working from home has been the norm. In a bid to keep operations moving and businesses flourishing, companies are doing everything in their captivity to make remote working as feasible as possible. Implementing digital detox strategies, such as setting boundaries on technology usage and promoting mindfulness practices, can empower entrepreneurs to maintain a healthier work-life balance and make more informed business decisions. This abstract explores meaning, importance, impact, and strategies of digital detoxification to mitigate the negative impacts of excessive digital engagement.
Top1. Introduction
“Do you frequently catch yourself scrolling aimlessly on your smartphone screen as hours pass by? It's not just you. According to research, 61% of adults admit to being dependent on the internet and their electronic devices. Even worse, having a continual connection might degrade your quality of life and overstimulate your senses. It may thus be beneficial for both your mental and physical health to take a vacation from your various social media applications and spend some time away from screens. A digital detox can help with that. You deliberately cut back on the amount of time you spend online on your gadgets during this time. Even choosing to entirely unplug is an option. Smartphones are widely used today. We use our cellphones for around three hours each day on average (Markowetz, 2015). Smartphones, in contrast to other electronic devices, allow the use of such functions essentially whenever and wherever, with countless implications for our everyday life.
Smartphones provide advantages, including the ability to stay in touch with friends at all times, enjoy engaging leisure activities, have access to an inexhaustible supply of information online, and have favourable effects on knowledge exchange (Lepp et al., 2013; Omar et al., 2016). On the other hand, using a smartphone can have a negative impact on wellbeing, a development that has drawn a lot of attention from the general public and academics. For instance, studies have demonstrated that smartphone use has an impact on social connections, performance, and health and well-being. According to research on health-related issues, smartphone usage is linked to greater rates of depression and anxiety (Lepp et al., 2014), trouble sleeping (Thomée, 2018), and musculoskeletal issues in cases of smartphone misuse (Nal et al., 2015). Additionally, a large body of empirical evidence suggests a negative relationship between smartphone usage and academic achievement (Amez & Baert, 2020), which is consistent with findings indicating excessive smartphone use is linked to reduced engagement and productivity at work (e.g., Duke & Montag, 2017). Additionally, when people focus on their personal cellphones during social encounters (a practise known as phubbing; McDaniel & Radesky, 2018; Nuez et al., 2020), it lowers the quality of conversations and raises negative affect or tension.
Smartphone users are worried about their personal smartphone usage, even if some of the negative correlations between using digital technology and health and well-being are slight (Dienlin & Johannes, 2020; Orben & Przybylski, 2019a; Orben & Przybylski, 2019b). For instance, studies have shown that smartphone users write blogs about the need to take breaks from their devices (Jorge, 2019; Kuntsman & Miyake, 2016), or even look for tips on how to better manage their online time, such as with the aid of apps like iOS Screen Time, Android Digital Well-Being, Moment, Forest, Quality Time, Detox, Space, or OffTime. Additionally, organisations have planned a yearly National (and Global) Day of Unplugging that has been observed for a number of years and has a large following (National Day of Unplugging, n.d.). Therefore, it is not unexpected that the media portrays switching off from cellphones as a hip approach to lessen its adverse effects on health-related results. Many different venues, including social media, websites, and books with titles like 24/6: The value of unplugging one day a week (Price, 2018; Shlain, 2019; Syvertsen, 2017), provide self-help advice. These messages' concerns are reflective of broader worries about smartphone use, and suggestions are made on how to rebalance one's life by cutting back on smartphone use (Syvertsen, 2017). Similar to this, travel agencies advertise “mobile free” vacations and so-called digital detox camps or centres. All of them try to aid individuals in escaping regular digital connectivity. Such celebrations and activities are particularly popular in Asia (Collier, 2009; Dickinson et al., 2016; Syvertsen, 2017).