A study from TollFreeForwarding.com shows that Americans scroll up to 115 miles on their phones annually.
Phone addiction is becoming a real issue in the U.S. with the average teenager spending about eight hours a day on their phones, while adults only spend about half of that with around 4 hours a day, according to the survey by the telecom provider.
On average, Americans spends 2,403 hours looking at their phone each year, which equates to 85.97 miles of scrolling, according to the new research. Studies show that wasted productivity costs the global economy an estimated $8.8 trillion each year, with phone usage being a major contributor.
The typical person checks their phone 58 times a day, with 30 of those interruptions happening during work hours. Half of all checks occur within just three minutes of the last one, creating a steady stream of interruptions. Research shows that this kind of nonstop task-switching can cut productivity by as much as 40%.
According to the TollFreeForwarding findings, residents of Arizona, Washington, and Kentucky scroll the farthest each year, with the average person in each of these states racking up over 100 miles of scrolling annually. The accompanying graphic shows how the top five states stack up:
In Arizona, the average person spends 8 hours and 50 minutes on their phone each day, the most of any state. All that time adds up, as Arizonans scroll an estimated 115.37 miles on their phones each year, which is roughly the distance from Phoenix to Tucson, just with their thumbs.
In Washington, residents average 8 hours and 17 minutes of screen time each day, and it adds up fast. Over the course of a year, that’s about 108.18 miles of phone scrolling, the equivalent of walking from Seattle to Olympia and back, all without ever leaving the couch.
In Kentucky, the average person spends 8 hours and 3 minutes on screens each day, leading to an annual scrolling distance of 105.18 miles. That’s about the same as traveling from Louisville to Cincinnati, just by swiping through content on a phone.
“Excessive screen time isn’t new but seeing it translated into miles really puts into perspective just how addicted to our phones we really are,” Jason O’Brien, COO of TollFreeForwarding.com. “Constant phone use, especially during work hours, can seriously impact productivity. To cut back, we recommend turning off non-essential notifications, using focus apps or website blockers, and keeping your phone out of reach during deep work.”
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Article provided with permission from AppleWorld.Today
