Factors Influencing Chinese College Students’ Simultaneous Smartphone Use in the Classroom

Abstract

Across the world, students enrolled in higher education are utilizing their smartphones in a variety of learning environments, which has become a prevalent practice. The objective of the present study is to investigate the factors influencing smartphone use among students in classrooms. Based on a thorough literature review and semi-structured interviews, a conceptual framework has been developed to better understand how college students utilize their smartphones in offline classroom learning settings. A survey based on the framework was conducted among 319 Chinese college students to investigate the impact of various factors on smartphone use. Results indicate a positive correlation between students' smartphone use and all individual factors, with entertainment, social connection, and self-control exhibiting more pronounced effects than other factors. Additionally, high levels of importance placed on course content and convenience significantly promote smartphone use. Overall, the findings support the implementation of the proposed framework to elucidate students' smartphone use behavior in the classroom, which can inform the redesign of curricular and academic-related activities to enhance students' learning, engagement, and overall academic performance.

Keywords: Smartphone use, Learning, In the classroom, Chinese college students

DOI: 10.54941/ahfe1005451