High school students in South Korea spend an average of six hours daily on smartphones and PCs, yet most do not consider themselves addicted, according to a new study that reveals a stark perception gap with their parents.
The Korea Institute of Child Care and Education recently released its "Korean Children's Growth and Development Longitudinal Study 2025" report, education officials said Sunday.
The study surveyed approximately 1,200 teenagers born in 2008, now in their senior year of high school. Their average daily media device usage was 6.02 hours.
Usage patterns differed by gender. Male students averaged 6.20 hours compared to 5.84 hours for females. Female students spent the most time on social networking services at 1.65 hours daily, while male students devoted 1.62 hours to gaming.
Despite the heavy usage, most teenagers did not view their smartphone habits as problematic.
In response to addiction-related questions, 86.3% of respondents classified themselves as "normal users." Only 12.5% identified as "potential risk users," and just 1.2% acknowledged being "high-risk users."
Parents saw it differently. Among parents asked the same questions, 36.7% classified their children as high-risk for smartphone addiction—more than 30 times the rate of teens who identified themselves as such.
Only 54.6% of parents considered their children normal users, indicating that a substantial portion view their children's smartphone use as excessive.
"A significant gap exists between teenagers' self-perceived smartphone dependency and the addiction signs parents observe," the researchers said. "Accurate assessment and intervention require considering evaluations from both the individual and their guardian."
Physical activity levels among the surveyed teens were notably low. Nearly one in four, or 24.8%, reported no physical activity lasting 30 minutes or more in the past week. Another 14.3% exercised only once during the week.
Average time spent on sports or outdoor activities was 1.13 hours on weekdays and 1.59 hours on weekends. This falls short of time spent watching videos (1.38 hours weekdays, 2.50 hours weekends) or playing games (1.27 hours weekdays, 2.17 hours weekends).
"As teenagers' media usage increases, physical activity is declining," the researchers said. "Schools and families need to focus on managing digital device use while encouraging more physical activity."
