Sissela Nutley gives teens the tools to take control of their screen time

Hardly anyone has missed the intrusion of screens and social media into our lives. Every day, the average mobile user is estimated to pick up their smartphone 350 times and spend 6 hours and 15 minutes in front of a screen. Perhaps this is not so strange, as we always have knowledge, friends and entertainment just a click away. Over our shoulders, we also have the big tech companies whose sophisticated logarithms create highly addictive apps. But how does it affect our brains to constantly being switched on?

“Research identifies distinct vulnerabilities, not least in relation to social media. These in specific include being a girl, have low self-esteem and caring a lot about appearance. And to be honest, who doesn't when growing up in the age we live in? Unfortunately, the young generation of today is the first to grow up with so many digital elements in their childhood. Therefor they often have to navigate on their own as we adults lack a manual. So, in this matter, both young people, parents and researchers have a lot to learn from each other,” states Sissela Nutley, researcher at Karolinska Institutet that in November will meet Uppsala's high school students as Kunskap För Livet returns to the University Grand Auditorium.

Society is doing its best to meet the challenges that our escalating screen time brings. In 2019, the World Health Organization classified Gaming Disorder as a psychiatric diagnosis, and in 2024, the Swedish Public Health Agency presented recommendations for childrens and young peoples screen use. These set a good rule of thumb for young people aged 13–18 to a maximum of three hours of screen time per day. In reality, Swedish teens average almost seven hours of screen time, not counting schoolwork, so there is definitely room for improvement.

“To optimise our chances of mental well-being, we must create balance in seven things. One of these seven that we experience increasing difficulties to handle is proper focus time. Here, our smart phones are a contributing factor, and switching off notifications is not enough. Researchers have found that persons who study with their phones in airplane mode but within reach have a harder time to absorb new knowledge than those who leave their phones in another room, which indicates that simply not to check your phone steals concentration. The same phenomenon is observed in social contexts, so if we want to be present and receptive, we likely have to leave our phones a few meters away,” says Sissela Nutley.

And how do teens themselves judge their screen use? According to the Swedish Media Council's surveys, an increasing number of young people are dissatisfied with spending too much time on their phones and social media. Three out of four 17-18 year olds add that their media use keep them from doing other important activities – which is in line with 72 percent of the participants at the premiere of Kunskap för livet feeling that they were more or less addicted to their mobiles. On the other hand, our phones are not that easy to abandon: Every other teenagers feel left out if they do not have "enough" screen time or access to social media.

“It is challenging to manage our everyday lives online, as our brain find it hard to stop scrolling, which makes it all the easier to get caught up in digital media. But if we want to make life more the way we prefer it, we must get better at not letting the screens get in the way of our basic needs. So far, society has placed great emphasis on the problems we perceive, but today I think we are all set for solutions and behavioral change,” says Sissela Nutley.

Here, schools and parents have an important task. OECD statistics show that Sweden has hit the European bottom line when it comes to classroom discipline with one in three students being distracted by other people's digital tools, which has prompted the National Agency for Education to investigate how digital devices are used in school. In parallel, the Public Health Agency offers I diversity of advice to parents who want to aid their children and teens to take control over their screen time. But the question is, should we, like Bill Gates, just simply wait until the child's 14th birthday to allow smart phones?

“Phones can be amazing tools, so personally I put my vote on helping young people with knowledge-based tips on how they can manage their screen use and inspire them to actually regain control of their time. Therefore, I am very much looking forward to meeting Uppsala's young people in the University Auditorium and the opportunity to give them tools and strategies that they will hopefully benefit from along their journey into adulthood.”

Hur mår barn och unga i en digital tid? • Sissela Nutley (in Swedish)

Text: Magnus Alsne, photo: Lina Eidenberg Adamo, Mikael Wallerstedt a o