Smartphone, social media use's effect on OCD, happiness and loneliness

UC Blue Ash expert featured in Allentown, Pennsylvania's WFMZ-TV report

The U.S. ranks 23rd in the latest World Happiness Report, dropping several spots. 

Experts say there is widespread concern about an emerging epidemic of loneliness. The National Library of Medicine says social media could be fueling these lonely feelings.

“When people are more prone to being bored, they’re going to be more likely to use their smartphone to address their uncertainty,” said Alex J. Holte, PhD, assistant professor of psychology at University of Cincinnati Blue Ash College.

Holte and undergraduate student researchers published findings that smartphone usage can increase and even become unhealthy for those who have obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), a psychiatric disorder with symptoms related to unwanted and distressing thoughts that can lead to repetitive and disruptive behaviors.

Watch or read the WFMZ-TV report.

Featured image at top: A person uses an iPhone. Photo/Onur Binay via Unsplash

Related Stories

1

Make Hoxworth Blood Center’s special holiday events part of your family celebrations this December

December 12, 2025

This December, Hoxworth Blood Center, University of Cincinnati, is inviting families across Greater Cincinnati to add something truly meaningful to their holiday traditions: giving the gift of life. With festive community events, beloved local partners and special thank-you gifts for donors, Hoxworth is making it easier, and more heartwarming than ever, to roll up your sleeves and help save lives close to home.

2

University of Cincinnati college is piloting a program to serve alumni of foster and kinship care

December 12, 2025

In 2025 the Ohio Reach Postsecondary designation was awarded to UC's College of Education, Criminal Justice, Human Services, and Information Technology (CECH) as part of the program's third cohort. The program recognizes and supports higher education institutions that have worked to make their campuses welcoming and accessible for students with a history in foster or kinship care. CECH will run a pilot program called Anchor Point aimed at wide-scale implementation across the campus in Fall 2026.

3

Ohio nurses weigh in on proposed federal loan rule

December 12, 2025

Spectrum News journalist Javari Burnett spoke with UC Dean Alicia Ribar and UC nursing students Megan Romero and Nevaeh Haskins about proposed new federal student loan rules. Romero and Haskins, both seniors, were filmed in the College of Nursing’s Simulation Lab.