Prevalence and association of digital eye strain with the quality of sleep and feeling of loneliness among female college students in Northern India

Abstract

Introduction: Because of COVID's impact on social behavior, students have become more reliant on computer-facilitated communication to continue their studies and interact with friends. While it is known that the association between screen exposure and psychological well-being is both harmful and stronger among adolescents than younger children, what is less studied are the causal factors that may mediate the relationship. Objectives: The objectives of this study were to analyze the relationship between screen exposure and two psychological outcomes, sleep quality and loneliness, using digital eye strain as a mediating factor. Eye strain is expected to have a direct and harmful influence on psychological well-being. Materials and Methods: A structured and validated questionnaire was transcribed and administered online. A nonrepresentative sample of 497 female college students in a North Indian city participated in the study. Digital eye strain, quality of sleep, and feeling of loneliness scores were assessed using latent class analysis. Results: The selected latent model suggested that Class 2 had a high percentage of students with network issues, the problem with space and noise, and various financial hardships, which had almost doubled the rate of loneliness (53.28%) and sleep–wake difficulties (75.41%) among the students affected with computer vision syndrome (89.75%). Conclusion: There is an urgent need to examine the implications of digital exposure across gender and age to prevent future complications. Further, awareness for improving holistic well-being in the digital era should be promoted through various platforms.

Keywords

• digital exposure
• feeling of loneliness
• quality of sleep