1

Running Head: REDUCING PHONE USE

Reducing Daily Phone Use Through Behavior Modification

Kaycee Leeds

PSY 3440

Oakland University

November 13, 2025

Almost all college students now use their smartphones on a regular basis. Phones provide

instant access to communication, entertainment, news, and social media, but they can also be

extremely distracting and mentally draining. Many students find themselves using their phones

significantly more than they intended, often without recognizing how much time they spend

scrolling throughout the day. Excessive phone use has been linked to procrastination, attention

deficits, sleep disruptions, mental health issues, and decreased productivity. Despite the many

advantages of smartphones, their constant use might have a detrimental impact on academic

performance, stress levels, and mood.

Research strongly supports the idea that reducing daily screen time might increase well-

being. In a randomized controlled experiment, Pieh et al. (2025) found that limiting smartphone

use to two hours or less per day resulted in significant improvements in stress, depressive

symptoms, sleep quality, and general well-being. Their findings revealed that even a minor

reduction in screen time might have a favorable impact on emotional functioning. Similarly,

Reed et al. (2023) found that lowering social media usage improved physical health, loneliness,

and immune function. Because college students are especially sensitive to the detrimental effects

of excessive screen use, findings like these are highly significant.

Personally, I find phone use to be a major source of distraction. I frequently go for my

phone while I should be studying, doing homework, or preparing for exams. I stay up too late on

my phone, and continual monitoring during the day gets in the way of productivity. Reducing my

daily phone use would help me manage my time more effectively and improve my mental health.

As a result, the current project's goal is to reduce my daily phone usage to a more reasonable

level through the use of behavior modification principles. Self-monitoring, shaping, and a
3
REDUCING PHONE USE
reinforcement schedule were used to increase the reduction in daily screen time. The goal of this

project was not to entirely eliminate phone use, but rather to decrease it to a level that does not

interfere with education, sleep, or personal well-being.

Method

This study was designed to reduce a behavioral excess: excessive daily phone use.

Excessive phone use was defined as the total number of minutes per day when the phone's screen

was turned on and actively being used. The participant chose this target behavior because she

regularly picked up her phone during studying, class lectures, and other attention-demanding

tasks. The behavior acted as an instant reinforcer, giving entertainment, escape, and continual

stimulation, making it impossible to ignore. Because phone use has become so routine and

automatic, a structured intervention was required to help reduce the behavior to a healthy, more

manageable level.

To reduce the behavior, a combination of self-monitoring, shaping, and a Continuous

Reinforcement (CRF) schedule with a token system was used. This type of reinforcement

schedule made sense for the participant because it allowed her to receive

reinforcement immediately for successful days, which helped her stay motivated throughout the

intervention. Reinforcement consisted of small, personally meaningful rewards chosen by the

participant herself. The intervention's main goal was not to eliminate phone use, but rather to

reduce it to a level that would benefit her academic habits, mental well-being, and daily

productivity.

Design and Materials

Participant: The participant was a 22-year-old female college student enrolled full-time

at Oakland University. She often spent 4-6 hours each day on her smartphone, going through
4
REDUCING PHONE USE
social media apps, browsing the internet, texting, or watching videos. She reported that phone

use regularly interfered with academics, sleep schedules, and productivity. The participant

volunteered in the project both as part of her Behavior Analysis course and as her own goal to

better her academic performance and general well-being.

Target Behavior: The target behavior was the participant's daily phone use. The

operational definition of phone use was any time the phone screen was turned on and actively

utilized for an app, website, message, or entertainment platform. The iPhone's built-in Screen

Time feature automatically recorded these minutes. Time spent running in the background (with

the screen turned off) was not counted. The goal of reducing the target behavior was to eliminate

distractions, increase attention, and lessen stress levels associated with school and daily life. The

objective was to reduce phone use to less than two hours each day.

Schedule of Reinforcement: The participant used a Continuous Reinforcement (CRF)

schedule with shaping. Under this schedule, the participant earned one token for each day her

total phone use minutes stayed under the specified daily limit. The shaping technique gradually

tightened the reinforcement criteria, making the goal easier to achieve initially but progressively

more challenging:

Days 1-3: Goal is under 4 hours.

Days 4-6: Goal is under three hours.

Days 7-10: Goal is under 2 hours.

Reinforcers included small, personally meaningful rewards like a treat, buying herself something

small, or extra leisure time. These reinforcers were chosen because they were realistic,

motivating, and easy to deliver consistently during the 10-day intervention. This combination of
5
REDUCING PHONE USE
CRF, token reinforcement, and shaping allowed the participant to earn reinforcement consistently

while still making steady progress, helping her remain motivated throughout the intervention.

Materials Used: The materials included the participant's iPhone with Screen Time

tracking activated; the "Do Not Disturb" and time-limit features in the phone's settings; a diary

for recording data and reinforcement points; and a list of reinforcers that they could pick from at

the end of each successful day. No extra tools or software were required, making the intervention

simple to execute in everyday situations.

Procedure

Baseline: Five consecutive days of baseline data were collected. During this period, the

participant did not adjust her phone usage habits. She just took the total number of active screen-

time minutes every evening from the Screen Time report. This phase determined the natural pace

of the goal behavior. The baseline data varied from 287 to 340 minutes each day, with an average

of 312.4 minutes (about 5.2 hours). This confirmed that the participant's phone usage was

excessive and inconsistent.

Intervention: The intervention phase lasted 10 days. The participant continued to track

her daily phone usage but now used reinforcement, shaping, and environmental arrangement

tactics. During the intervention, the participant established time limitations for commonly used

applications (such as TikTok, Instagram, and Safari), enabled "Do Not Disturb" during study

sessions, kept her phone in a separate room when doing schoolwork, and limited alerts to lessen

cues to check her phone. Every evening, she evaluated her day's statistics, documented them in

her diary, and decided if she deserved a reinforcement point. As shaping progressed, satisfying

the daily criterion got increasingly difficult, encouraging consistent gains in behavior and self-

control throughout the program.

Compared to baseline, my daily phone use decreased significantly during the

intervention.

Baseline average: 312.4 minutes/day

Intervention average: 183.6 minutes/day

Total reduction: ~128.8 minutes/day (41% decrease)

Initially, the intervention resulted in little improvement, but as goals tightened and reinforcement

increased, usage gradually decreased. By the last three days, I was consistently near my 2-hour

target, with my lowest day at 138 minutes. In addition to numerical improvements, I observed

significant personal changes. My sleep has improved since I was scrolling less at night. I

procrastinated less on academics, experienced fewer moments of mental "overload," and was less

anxious overall. These subjective gains are consistent with Pieh et al.'s (2025) study findings,

which revealed that reducing screen time improves mood and mental health.

Appendix A has a line graph based on my data.

Discussion

The goal of this study was to reduce participants' daily phone use with a CRF

reinforcement schedule, a token system, and shaping. The intervention successfully decreased

phone use by around 41%, demonstrating that constant reward and progressive goal reduction

may effectively modify a behavioural excess. These findings support previous research. Pieh et

al. (2025) found that reducing screen time increases well-being and decreases stress, and

participants in this study reported feeling more focused and less overwhelmed. Reed et al. (2023)

discovered that limiting social media use can enhance overall health, which corresponds to the

participants' subjective improvements. This study's limitations included a single participant, a

make the long-term effects unknown. Future work might include expanding the intervention,

using greater reinforcers, or including tools like app blocks or accountability partners. Despite its

limitations, the experiment demonstrated that behavioral modification strategies may effectively

reduce excessive phone use.

Pieh, C., O’Rourke, T., Probst, T., & Dale, R. (2025). The effects of limiting smartphone use on

well-being, sleep, and emotional functioning in young adults: A randomized controlled

trial. Journal of Behavioral Health, 14(2), 115–132.

Reed, P., Osman, M., & Childs, E. (2023). Reducing social media use improves physical health,

loneliness, and immune functioning: Evidence from a controlled intervention.

Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking, 26(4), 276–285.