24 Horas de Ayuno Digital y su Influencia en los Hábitos de Estudiantes Universitarios

Building on the projects “The Unplugged World” and “24 Hours Without Media” (Moeller et al., 2012), we examine how a 24-hour digital fast affects university students’ study, leisure, and relationships, and whether it fosters reflective learning linked to digital competence. We conducted an exploratory qualitative study within an interpretivist framework, as a partial replication, conducted at the beginning of the second semester of the course in the faculty. Sixty-three undergraduates from the Bachelor's Degree in Primary Education at the University of Murcia participated. After completing the challenge, they answered an online ten-item questionnaire (open and closed questions), analyzed using a grounded theory approach. 22/63 completed the disconnection. The accounts indicate academic interferences when technologies were used instrumentally and, in contrast, benefits of the temporary withdrawal: greater concentration, fewer distractions, enjoyment of in-person leisure, and richer face-to-face interactions. We also observed specific difficulties for academic tasks, episodes of more intentional study planning, and differentiated usage profiles (instrumental and hedonic/multitasking) associated with distinct effects. Overall, the challenge emerges as an effective learning activity to promote metacognition and self-regulation of media consumption. We recommend curricular integration with brief reflective scaffolds and feedback, and comparative studies with follow-ups to estimate the magnitude and persistence of effects across contexts