Smartphone Use and Academic Performance: Correlation or Causal Relationship?
利用工具变量法分析比利时两所大学一年级学生的数据，发现每日智能手机使用量每增加一个标准差，平均考试成绩下降约1分（满分20分），且该负效应在父亲教育程度高、父母离异或身体健康的学生中更明显。
SUMMARY After a decade of correlational research, this study attempts to measure the causal impact of (general) smartphone use on educational performance. To this end, we merge survey data on general smartphone use, exogenous predictors of this use, and other drivers of academic success with the exam scores of first‐year students at two Belgian universities. The resulting data are analysed with instrumental variable estimation techniques. A one‐standard‐deviation increase in daily smartphone use yields a decrease in average exam scores of about one point (out of 20). When relying on ordinary least squares estimations, the magnitude of this effect is substantially underestimated. The negative association between smartphone use and exam results is more outspoken for students (i) with highly educated fathers, (ii) with divorced parents and (iii) who are in good health. Policy‐makers should at least invest in information and awareness campaigns of teachers and parents to highlight this trade‐off between smartphone use and academic performance.