EVALUATION OF SCREEN TIME AND ITS ASSOCIATION WITH MENTAL HEALTH, SLEEP QUALITY AND HEALT PERCEPTION IN UNIVERSITY STUDENTS

Bishama Shafaat*, Hamna Masood, Saman Anar, Moeez Ahmad

ABSTRACT

Background: The widespread usage of electronic gadgets and the development of digital technology have drastically changed daily life, especially for college students. Prolonged screen usage may be associated with several negative health effects, according to recent studies. The objective was to evaluate screen time and its association with mental health, sleep quality, and health perception in university students.

Methodology: A cross-sectional study was conducted in University of Lahore (UOL) students. The sample taken for the study comprises of 119 students within the age of 19-25 years. The study was completed from April 2024 to June 2024. Screen time was measured by a generally modified structured questionnaire. Mental Health was measured by Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9). Sleep quality was measured by the Sleep Quality Scale (SQS) and Health Perception of students was measured by Short Form -36 (SF-36).

Results: The mean age of the participants was 21.25± 1.70. 53.8% were male. 30.3% of students as a whole had no depression. 47.1% of students had mild depression. 22.7% of the students reported having moderately severe symptoms of depression. 17.6% had a minimal sleep disorder 14.3% had a mild sleep disorder. 23.5% had a moderate sleep disorder and 44.5% had a severe sleep disorder. This study concluded that there was a statistically significant association between screen time usage and mental health (p<0.05) and that there was a statistically significant association between screen time usage and sleep quality (p<0.01).

Conclusion: This study concluded that 60% of the students were involved in high screen time usage. Nearly half of the population was experiencing mild depression and 70% of the students had poor sleep.

Keywords: Health Perception, Mental health, Sleep Quality, Screen time and University students.