Mobile Phone Addiction and Academic Procrastination Negatively Impact Academic Achievement Among Chinese Medical Students

The problem of mobile phone addiction and academic procrastination among medical students has been widely acknowledged. This study aims to explore the situation and influence of demographic factors on mobile phone addiction, academic procrastination, and academic achievement among medical students. Further, it investigates the association between mobile phone addiction, academic procrastination, and academic achievement. This cross-sectional study was conducted between May and June 2019. A total of 3,511 medical students participated in an online questionnaire survey (effective response rate = 81.7%). Demographic factors, the scale of academic achievement, the short scale of the Mobile Phone Problem Use (MPPUS-10), and the Academic Procrastination Scale–Short (APS-S) were included in each questionnaire. The association between mobile phone addiction and academic procrastination interaction with academic achievement was examined using hierarchical multiple regression analysis. The average scores for academic procrastination, mobile phone addiction, and academic achievement were 2.66±0.91, 5.13±1.53, and 4.51±0.71 points, respectively. Moreover, there were significant differences in gender, grade, experience of leadership cadre, and family monthly income across mobile phone addiction, academic procrastination, and academic achievement. Participants’ mobile phone addiction was negatively associated with learning dedication, learning performance, and relationship facilitation. Participants’ academic procrastination was negatively associated with learning dedication, learning performance, relationship facilitation, and objective achievement. The problem of mobile phone addiction and academic procrastination is common among Chinese medical students and negatively influences academic achievement. It is critical to establish a more high-efficiency learning environment for Chinese medical students to minimize the side effects of mobile phone addiction and academic procrastination.