In recent years, smartphones have become very popular, especially among adolescents in Vietnam. Smartphones have been used for many different purposes besides communication such as seek information, entertainment activities, mobile banking, accessing social networking sites. Excessive smartphone usage has caused many people to fall into a state of addiction. University students are identified as the most frequent smartphone users, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic when online learning and digital communication became essential. In this study, we examined the relationship between smartphone usage, problematic use, life satisfaction, and academic performance of university students. An online questionnaire was developed and received responses from 1,202 final year students at public university in Northern Vietnam. Based on the data collected, we employ quantitative methods for processing the data. The results reveal that problematic smartphone use has a certain effect on students' academic performance, while no significant association is found with life satisfaction. The findings emphasize the need for strategies that promote responsible smartphone use among students to safeguard academic outcomes in the digital era.
Nguyen et al. (Wed,) studied this question.