Devices of mass distraction: Can they be kept at bay by going grey? An investigation into greyscale as an effective strategy in reducing phone use

Abstract

Due to the rise of problematic phone use, this study aimed to investigate whether greyscale is effective in reducing phone engagement. It employed a repeated measures between groups experimental design, with engagement on phone as dependent variable, measured through Screen Time, and independent variables screencolour (colour or greyscale) and self-reported problematic phone use scores (MPPUS-10). Two questionnaires were administered to 58 iPhone participants (41 female, 17 male), divided into the control or experimental group. A significant decrease was found for phone engagement, between the control and experimental group, although not significantly within social networking. This indicated that whilst greyscale was effective in reducing overall phone engagement, more research is needed to investigate the feasibility and underlying motivations.