A South Korean study of over 1,200 middle school students has traced a quiet but consequential pathway: childhood abuse diminishes self-worth, self-worth's erosion deepens depression, and depression finds its refuge in the glow of a screen. The research, led by a doctoral candidate at Ewha Womans University, suggests that what looks like a technology problem may in fact be a wound seeking comfort in digital form. In doing so, it asks institutions — schools, welfare agencies, families — to look past the symptom and toward the suffering that precedes it.
Childhood trauma linked to teen smartphone addiction in Korean study
Adolescents experiencing childhood abuse face compounded psychological harm through increased depression and smartphone addiction vulnerability.