Onbereikbaar of Onmisbaar De Samenhang tussen Mentale Gezondheid en Naleving van het Telefoonverbod: de Mediërende rol van Telefoongebruik

Frequent smartphone use among adolescents had been associated with reduced concentration, lower mental health and poorer sleep quality. As a result, growing concern has emerged among parents, schools and researchers. For these reason, a nationwide classroom phone ban has been implemented in Dutch secondary schools since January 2024. This study examines the relationship between students’ mental health and their compliance with the phone ban, and whether this relationship is mediated by their general smartphone use. The date for this study were obtained from the Unplugged-project by Erasmus University Rotterdam and are based on a one-time measurement using an online questionnaire. A total of 106 students from a secondary school in Amstelveen participated. Validated scales were used to measure mental health, general smartphone use and smartphone use at school. The hypotheses were tested using linear regression analyses. The analyses showed no significant relationship between students’ mental health and either their smartphone use or their compliance with the phone ban. However, a significant association was found between general smartphone use and phone ban compliance: students who used their phones more frequently were less likely to comply with the ban. Smartphone use did not mediate the relationship between mental health and compliance. Based on these findings, it is concluded that students’ phone use, rather than their mental health, plays a decisive role in compliance with the classroom phone ban. Schools may respond to this by promoting media literacy and awareness of the consequences of smartphone us, alongside enforcing rules.