This article explores different aspects of personal and psychological well-being of young adults in Portugal. Data was collected in April 2022. The sample includes 600 young adults from Portugal, selected according to proportional quotas by region, size of municipality, age (20 to 24) and gender (www.medium.com/proyectowise and www.unav.edu/yit). The authors paid special attention to the role of mobile devices and key dimensions of life (family, friends, education, work, and leisure time) in young adults’ well-being. The study was based on a series of questions: How is well-being among Portuguese young adults linked to factors such as gender, education, occupation, and household composition? What is the link between extensive and problematic use of mobile technologies and the well-being of young adults? What other key factors are associated with personal well-being?  Namely, what is the role of screen-free leisure activities and of satisfaction with core dimensions of life (family, friends, study or work, and free time)?

The variable of well-being was measured as a mean of two variables: the answer to the question of self-declared happiness ‘Do you consider yourself a happy person?’ and a second variable, which is a summary of ten questions about self-esteem (Rosenberg, 1965). Finally, well-being was divided into three categories on a 10-point scale: ‘low well-being’ (5 points or less), ‘medium well-being’ (between 5 and 8 points) and, ‘high well-being’ (more than 8 points).

The sample was distributed according to the level of personal well-being (low, medium, or high) and according to gender, education, occupation, and household composition (with whom respondents lived and if they lived with or without family).

More than a quarter of the sample (26.7%) had low levels of well-being (5 points or less, out of 10, magenta); 41% had average levels of well-being (between 5 and 8 points, orange) and 31.9% of the sample had high levels of well-being (more than 8 points, blue).  Notably, the data may still reflect the impact of the pandemic on the disruption of daily routines (low attendance at school or university and disturbances in study, work, leisure, social life, or sports activities) which likely harmed the well-being of young adults. 
 

Women, the unemployed, respondents with a primary education or an undergraduate degree, and those who lived without family exhibited the greatest shares of low well-being. Conversely, men, respondents with a post-graduate degree, those who worked, and those who lived with family members had the greatest shares of high well-being. Therefore, having an active life and having moved out of the family home appear to be associated with higher levels of well-being among young adults.

Despite the many benefits attributed to mobile technologies, researchers have been concerned with the potential impact of excessive mobile phone use. In this study, 30.1% of respondents were found to have problematic mobile phone use, and more than 50% pointed out that it would be difficult to stop using their mobile phone.

Specialists define problematic use of mobile phones as the inability to control one’s mobile phone use, leading to negative outcomes in daily life. In our study, about 42% of respondents pointed out that they did not control the use of their mobile phone or only controlled it a little. Past studies indicate links between mobile device use and social, interpersonal, mental health, cognition, and academic disfunction for some individuals. Therefore, it is important to look at the link between time spent on one’s mobile phone and well-being levels. The proportion of respondents with high well-being is noticeably lower among those who spent more than 8 hours a day on their mobile phone.

Specialists point out that young adults are more susceptible to using their mobile phones excessively for social purposes and might develop mobile phone habits faster, which in turn might lead to addictive behaviour that affects well-being. Putting gender into the equation, according to our data, young women tend to spend half an hour more per day on their mobile devices (5 hours and 50 minutes per day, on average) than men (5 hours and 20 minutes per day, on average). In addition, experts point out that men might experience less social stress than women since they are less inclined to use their mobile phones for social purposes. The result is that women have a higher chance of developing habitual or addictive behaviour concerning their mobile devices.

Despite the association between problematic use and lower well-being levels, most respondents (74.5%) reported that their mobile devices contributed quite or a lot to their well-being during the pandemic. Despite this common perception by young adults, researchers point out that using communication technology during the COVID-19 pandemic affected users’ psychological well-being both positively and negatively, depending on the users’ purpose for using the devices. Mobile use decreased loneliness and, in turn, increased satisfaction with life mainly when people sought social connection through phone calling and video chatting. Conversely, experts point out that using communication technologies for purposes other than social connection did not gratify the need for belonging during the pandemic. Therefore, only the types of mobile use that provided social presence and connection were useful for increasing well-being when face-to-face interactions were limited.

Specialists in well-being and psychological distress often advise protective activities that promote a sense of well-being. In the present study, evidence is reiterated that hobbies and  physical activities are associated with higher rates of personal and psychological well-being.  The most obvious cleavage appears among those who do not have any screen-free hobbies or physical activities and those who dedicate at least a few hours per week to such activities.  Specifically, only about a quarter (24.6%) of those who do not have any screen-free physical activity have shown high levels of well-being, compared to 36.1% of those who dedicate between 2 and 4 hours per week to such activities. Even greater is the difference between those who do not dedicate weekly time to screen-free hobbies: of these only 23.7% present high well-being, compared to 39.2% of those who dedicate between 2 and 4 hours per week to hobbies and 38.9% of those who dedicate between 6 and 8 hours to them.

Specialists point out that proper sleep length and quality are vital elements of one’s physical and emotional well-being.  The lowest percentages of respondents with high well-being were found among respondents who reported sleeping less than 6 hours a day. 

Sleep length and quality may be related to other factors, such as academic or work performance. Research has regularly found that young adults, and particularly college students, experience a variety of sleep difficulties ranging from lack of sleep to poor sleep quality. Specialists alert that, despite the evidence, young adults may not fully understand or recognise that the absence of a good night’s sleep can decrease their academic performance and have other detrimental effects such as lower well-being.

Personal and social relationships were the dimensions of life most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, since most young adults were deprived of the opportunity to share face-to-face time with at least some of their family and friends. These relationships are among the factors most strongly related to well-being.

In the case of family relationships, the proportion of high well-being was three times greater among respondents who reported a lot of satisfaction than among those who reported a little satisfaction (50.8% vs 14.7%) and almost double that of those who reported no satisfaction (28.6%). At the opposite end, 52.9% of those who reported a little satisfaction and 42.9% of those who reported no satisfaction with their family relationships had low levels of well-being.

These proportions are similar in the case of satisfaction with the relationship with friends. The proportion of high well-being was approximately four times greater among respondents who reported a lot of satisfaction than among those who reported a little satisfaction (50.8% vs 12.3%) and almost double that of those who reported no satisfaction (28.6%). Conversely, 52.6% of those who reported a little satisfaction and 42.9% of those who reported no satisfaction with their relationship with friends also presented low levels of well-being. These results suggest that in the lives of Portuguese young adults, and in difficult situations or contexts such as the pandemic, personal relationships are especially valuable for avoiding low well-being and promoting high levels of well-being. 

But if family and friendship relationships are very important in the lives of young adults, satisfaction with academic life or work and the use of free time are even more important, as seen in Figure 8.

In terms of academic or work performance, high levels of well-being were nine times more frequent among respondents who reported a lot of satisfaction compared to respondents reporting no satisfaction (53.2% vs 5.9%). This ratio is also clearly high in the case of satisfaction with the use of free time: the proportion of high well-being was six times greater among those reporting a lot of satisfaction as opposed to those reporting no satisfaction (62.1% vs. 10%). In contrast, about half of respondents who reported no satisfaction with academic or work performance or with the use of their free time presented low levels of well-being.  Thus, we can attest to the great importance of these dimensions in the well-being of young Portuguese respondents.

Overall, the respondents who demonstrated high well-being used mobile devices in moderation or in a non-problematic way and spent time on screen-free hobbies and physical activity.  The mobile phone is thus a double-edged sword.  Portuguese young adults see it as fundamental for connecting with others, especially in the recent COVID-19 lockdowns, bringing comfort and a feeling of increased well-being. However, excessive and problematic use of mobile phones is linked to low well-being.  Still, the problem isn’t necessarily access to and use of digital technology itself.  Rather, other factors may precede the influence of mobile devices. For example, the number of hours of sleep and satisfaction with relationships, academic or work performance and free time are very important for well-being. It may well be that people who are unsatisfied with certain dimensions of their lives are more likely to use mobile technologies in a more intense and problematic way to compensate for unfulfilling aspects of their lives.

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