The Impact of Digital Detox Training on Screen Use, Sleep Quality, and Healthy Lifestyle Behaviors in Adolescents (DIGIDETOX-RCT)

April 21, 2026 updated by: HÜSEYİN ÇAPUK, Şırnak Üniversitesi

Effects of Digital Detox Training on Screen Use, Sleep Quality, and Healthy Lifestyle Behaviors in Adolescents: A Randomized Controlled Trial

This study evaluates the effects of a digital detox program on screen time, sleep quality, and healthy lifestyle behaviors among adolescents aged 10-19 years. Excessive use of smartphones and digital devices is associated with poor sleep quality, reduced well-being, and impaired daily functioning.

Participants will be randomly assigned to either a digital detox intervention group or a control group. The intervention consists of ten weekly 60-minute sessions designed to reduce screen time, increase awareness of digital media use, and improve sleep hygiene. The control group will not receive any intervention.

Data will be collected at baseline and approximately 10 weeks after the intervention using standardized questionnaires and screen time measures. The study aims to evaluate whether a structured digital detox program improves behavioral and sleep-related outcomes in adolescents.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

Digital screen use has become a central part of daily life worldwide, particularly among adolescents. Excessive screen exposure has been associated with sleep disturbances, psychological distress, and reduced academic performance.

Previous studies have demonstrated associations between problematic smartphone use and poor sleep quality, with pre-sleep behaviors acting as a mediating factor. Digital detox interventions, defined as structured reductions in digital device use, have been reported to improve sleep quality, reduce stress, and support healthier behavioral patterns.

However, there is limited experimental evidence evaluating structured digital detox programs in adolescent populations within educational settings. Therefore, this randomized controlled trial aims to examine the effects of a structured digital detox program on screen use behavior, sleep quality, and lifestyle outcomes among adolescents.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

160

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • Turkey (Türkiye)
    • Merkez
      • Şırnak, Merkez, Turkey (Türkiye), 73000
        • Şırnak University, Vocational School of Health Services

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Child
  • Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria Aged 10-19 years Smartphone user At least 3 hours of daily screen time Willing to participate in the digital detox program Written informed consent and parental consent obtained No diagnosed chronic medical condition or sleep disorder Exclusion Criteria Outside the age range (10-19 years) Does not use a smartphone Daily screen time less than 3 hours Diagnosed chronic medical illness (e.g., diabetes, asthma, epilepsy) Diagnosed sleep disorder Current psychiatric treatment or medication use Previous participation in a similar digital detox or sleep intervention Unable to attend intervention sessions regularly Refusal to complete study assessments

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Prevention
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Digital Detox Intervention
Arm 1: Experimental - Digital Detox Intervention Participants receive a structured 10-week digital detox program consisting of weekly 60-minute sessions including psychoeducation, behavioral strategies, goal setting, self-monitoring, and sleep hygiene education.
Behavioral: Digital Detox Intervention
Behavioral Intervention: Digital Detox Program A structured 10-week program delivered in weekly 60-minute sessions. The program includes psychoeducation, cognitive-behavioral strategies, reduction of screen use behaviors, goal setting, self-monitoring, and sleep hygiene training. Participants track daily screen time and receive guided feedback.
No Intervention: Control Group
Arm 2: Control - No Intervention Participants continue their usual daily routine and receive no structured intervention during the study period. Assessments are completed at scheduled time points.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Changes in Multi-Screen Addiction Levels
Time Frame: Baseline and approximately 10 weeks post-intervention
Participants' levels of problematic multiscreen use will be assessed using the total score of the Multiscreen Addiction Scale. Higher scores indicate higher levels of problematic screen use. Changes will be evaluated by comparing baseline and post-intervention measurements following a 10-week digital detox program.
Baseline and approximately 10 weeks post-intervention

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Changes in the Level of Healthy and Sustainable Lifestyle
Time Frame: Baseline and approximately 10 weeks post-intervention
Healthy and sustainable lifestyle behaviors will be assessed using the total score of the Healthy and Sustainable Lifestyle Scale (range: 24 to 120). Higher scores indicate healthier and more sustainable lifestyle behaviors. Changes will be evaluated by comparing baseline and post-intervention measurements.
Baseline and approximately 10 weeks post-intervention
Changes in Sleep Quality (Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index - PSQI)
Time Frame: Baseline and approximately 10 weeks post-intervention
Sleep quality will be assessed using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) total score (range: 0 to 21). Higher scores indicate poorer sleep quality. A score greater than 5 indicates poor sleep quality. Changes will be evaluated by comparing baseline and post-intervention measurements.
Baseline and approximately 10 weeks post-intervention

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Şırnak Üniversitesi

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

  • Ağargün, M. Y. K., Hayrettin. Anlar, Ömer. (1996). Pittsburgh uyku kalitesi indeksinin gecerligi ve guvenirligi. Turk Psikiyatri Dergisi, 7, 107-115. Akram, B., Irshad, S., Nazim, H., Waheed, A., & Riaz, S. (2025). Effect of Digital Detoxification on Sleep quality and Cognitive Performance: A Newer Intervention Trent in Current Era. Bulletin of Business and Economics (BBE), 14(2), 26-29. Amez, S., & Baert, S. (2020). Smartphone use and academic performance: A literature review. International Journal of Educational Research, 103, 101618. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijer.2020.101618 Bozkurt, A., Demirdöğen, E. Y., & Akıncı, M. A. (2024). The Association Between Bedtime Procrastination, Sleep Quality, and Problematic Smartphone Use in Adolescents: A Mediation Analysis. Eurasian J Med, 56(1), 69-75. https://doi.org/10.5152/eurasianjmed.2024.23379 Brockmeier, L. C., Keller, J., Dingler, T., Paduszynska, N., Luszczynska, A., & Radtke, T. (2025). Planning a digital detox: Findings from a randomized controlled trial to reduce smartphone usage time. Computers in human behavior, 168, 108624. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2025.108624 Buysse, D. J., Reynolds III, C. F., Monk, T. H., Berman, S. R., & Kupfer, D. J. (1989). The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index: a new instrument for psychiatric practice and research. Psychiatry Research, 28(2), 193-213. Choi, S., & Feinberg, R. A. (2021). The LOHAS (lifestyle of health and sustainability) scale development and validation. Sustainability, 13(4), 1598. Gökkaya, D. (2024). Sağlıklı ve Sürdürülebilir Yaşam Tarzı Ölçeği: Türkçe Geçerlilik ve Güvenirlik Çalışması. İnsan ve Toplum Bilimleri Araştırmaları Dergisi, 13(3), 1173-1191. Kemp, S. (2025). Digital 2025: Global Overview Report. https://datareportal.com/reports/digital-2025-global-overview-report Accessed 24.10.2025 Moody, R. (2025). Screen Time Statistics: Average Screen Time by Country. https://www.comparitech.com/tv-streaming/screen-time-stati

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

January 1, 2026

Primary Completion (Actual)

April 12, 2026

Study Completion (Actual)

April 12, 2026

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

April 12, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

April 21, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

April 29, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

April 29, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

April 21, 2026

Last Verified

April 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • SIRNAKUNI-DIGIDETOX-2025

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

IPD Plan Description

The data collected in this study include participants' personal and sensitive behavioral information. Individual-level raw data will not be shared with other researchers due to privacy and confidentiality concerns.

Data will be analyzed within the scope of this study and reported in aggregate form. No personally identifiable information will be disclosed. All data will be stored in encrypted and password-protected systems.

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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