MOBILE PHONE DEPENDENCY AND PSYCHOLOGICAL WELLBEING OF STUDENTS IN SELECTED SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN NAIROBI COUNTY- KENYA

Abstract

v ABSTRACT The use of mobile phones is common among secondary school students. The mobile phone use and the psychological wellbeing of secondary school students have become an issue of interest for research. The aim of this study was to assess the relationship between the time spent on mobile phone and the psychological wellbeing of secondary school students in Nairobi County, Kenya. The objectives of the study consisted of determining the influence of duration in the mobile phone use on the psychological wellbeing of students in selected secondary schools; assessing the factors which contribute to mobile phone dependency among students in selected secondary schools; establishing mobile phone applications which interfere with the psychological wellbeing of students in selected secondary schools; and identifying strategies put in place for the management of mobile phone dependency in secondary school students of Nairobi county. The study used an embedded mixed method research approach. A Multistage sampling method was employed in selecting the 7 schools. The study population was 3324 and 7 School members of the administration. A total sample size of 364 respondents was drawn. Qualitative and quantitative data were collected using an interview guide and a questionnaire. Data were by thematic analysis, descriptive and inferential statistics. Pearson’s Product Moment Correlation Coefficients was used for data analysis. The main findings of this study showed entertainment is the main reason for using the mobile phone; TikTok was found to be the most liked social media application by students in secondary schools in Nairobi county; the study assessed a strong negative correlation between time spent in the use of mobile phones and the psychological wellbeing of secondary school students (Mean=4.598 and Standard Deviation=0.953). The study also found that there was a strong negative correlation between time spent on the mobile phone and the aspect of autonomy (Mean-4.633 and Standard Deviation= 1.237), and the self-acceptance (Mean=4.911 and Standard Deviation=1.546). The study has formulated recommendation to the school administration to improve the school counselling facilities by allocating sufficient human and material resources in addressing the issues related to mental health of secondary school students.