The Impact of Smartphone Addictive Use by Students with Learning Disabilities on Social, Psychological and Academic Domains

Abstract

The current study aimed at identifying the impact of the addictive use of smartphones by students with learning disabilities on the social, psychological and academic domains. The sample of the study consisted of 210 male and female students enrolled in classes of resource rooms of grades five to nine in public and private schools at the Ministry of Education in Amman governorate. The researcher developed two measures to achieve the goals of the study; the first is “a scale to measure the addiction of smartphones use”, which contains 32 items, and another scale to measure the “impact of smartphones excessive use on social, emotional and academic domains”, which contains (30) items. This process was preceded by a review of previous similar pedagogic studies. Validity and reliability significance were extracted. Results revealed that the estimation of the addictive use of smartphones by students of learning disabilities aged 11-15 was rated as average. Results also revealed that impact of smartphone use dominated the social and emotional aspects over the academic. Results call for the need to develop and practise some precocious interventions and early detection of the excessive use of smartphones in general, but above all by students with learning disabilities.