The Relationship Between Problematic Smartphone Use and Difficulties in Attention, Working Memory, and Inhibitory Control Among Brazilian University Students

Abstract Intensive smartphone use has raised concerns about its potential effects on cognitive functioning. This study examined the associations between problematic smartphone use, objectively measured average daily smartphone usage time, and subjective and objective indicators of executive functioning in 74 Brazilian university students. Participants completed the SPAI-BR, the Digit Span task, and a Go/No-Go task, and submitted weekly screenshots of smartphone usage time over four weeks. Results showed that 67.57% of participants were classified as having problematic smartphone use, and the mean objectively measured daily usage time was 6.12 h. Although usage time was associated with SPAI-BR scores in unadjusted analyses, this relationship was no longer significant after adjustment for age and sex. Small but significant correlations were found between SPAI-BR scores and self-reported complaints of memory, attention, and inhibitory control. In adjusted models, SPAI-BR scores remained associated with self-reported memory and inhibitory control complaints. In contrast, no consistent associations were observed with objective measures of working memory or inhibitory control. These findings suggest that problematic smartphone use was more closely related to subjective cognitive complaints than to objectively measurable executive impairments, whereas usage time alone did not emerge as a robust independent indicator. Future studies using longitudinal designs and more sensitive cognitive measures are needed to clarify these relationships.