This school year is only a few weeks old but already, a teacher has caught freshman Colby Cronnin checking his phone during class. Ever since he replaced his regular cell phone with a smartphone, Cronnin said he has developed a habit of obsessively checking his phone.

Cronnin said, “I’ll constantly check (my phone) whenever I get a text or whenever I’m just dazing off. It doesn’t matter what I’m doing; I’ll just check it every five minutes.”

Cronnin is not alone. According to a May 2011 study by the Helsinki Institute of Information Technology and Intel Labs Research, obsessive phone checking habits are especially prevalent in smartphone users. The checks, on average, last for less than 30 seconds and are done every 10 minutes. The subjects of the study checked their phone 34 times a day not out of a certain need but, rather, out of habit.

According to psychologist Todd Casbon, obsessive phone checking habits, particularly with smartphone users, are becoming an increasing problem, especially among teenagers and young adults.

Casbon, a worker at Lifecare Counseling Services in Carmel, said, “When people get distracted, it takes time to shift their attention back to their work, so obsessive checking can cause people to be less productive.”

Cronnin said he agrees with this notion that overchecking can hinder productiveness. “(My smartphone) interferes with getting my homework done. I constantly check it at home, at school and at night, so I spend a lot of my time getting distracted on my phone. I probably should be doing other things like homework and not being so antisocial.”

According to Casbon, social and interpersonal problems are some long-term effects for obsessive phone checking.

Cronnin said he experiences such interpersonal problems, particularly with his parents. “My parents get mad at me for (using my phone),” he said. “I know it’s rude, but I’ll just text someone and listen to the person at the same time.”

Unlike Cronnin, senior William Kee said his smartphone does not interfere with his relationships with other people because he does not have such obsessive phone checking habits.  Kee said, “I keep from overchecking because I honestly don’t need a phone. People overcheck their phones because (they) are just simply obsessive over their technology.”

Although Cronnin is one such person who claims to be obsessed, he said the addiction is not always bad.

Still, overchecking one’s phone can certainly take on a lot of addictive qualities, according to Casbon. Often, addictions have a habitual nature to them, and overchecking a phone is a habitual kind of behavior that produces some sort of short-term immediate gratification.  Checking is slightly analogous to taking a drug, gambling or even taking alcohol, Casbon said, and every time a person uses the drug or rolls the dice, there is a possibility that something will happen shortly after to make the person feel good.

Cronnin said he experiences such feelings of satisfaction when texting his friends. “I’ll just stay up really late at night texting. Why not? We have great conversations,” he said. “It’s really easy to get caught up in texting friends, checking Facebook and staying entertained.”

Casbon said he agrees that such features make smartphones more addicting for users than regular cell phones. “Smartphones not only have text messaging but email and internet capabilities that old phones didn’t have access to,” Casbon said.  “Plus, smartphones load very quickly, so people know that if they go on their smartphone, they can get new information instantaneously.”

Cronnin said he enjoys these special capabilities smartphones have to offer. “Smartphones are convenient. Everything is within an inch of my fingertip,” he said. “It’s fast. It’s colorful. It’s everything that entertains people now compared to a regular phone that has just the basics. I didn’t use my first phone very much, but now I use my smartphone a lot for music, games and Facebook.”

Kee, however, said his phone usage has remained stagnant since the time he made the switch from a regular phone to a smartphone despite being able to access information instantly.  Kee said, “To me, a cell phone will always just be a way for people to know where I am. It’s just another piece of technology for me.”

Although many smartphone users do not possess obsessive phone checking habits, Casbon said users who do have a significant problem with checking exist, and they may need to consider getting rid of their smartphone due to their severe effects on the users’ lives.

“Smartphones may cause students to fall behind in their school work, resulting in poor grades. This makes getting into a certain college harder as well as getting a certain job,” Casbon said. “People have to break this habit; otherwise, they may suffer the long-term risks.”