Digital life under lockdown: Survey says 75% would be “lost” without their screens

June 5, 2020June 5, 2020 The Big Kahuna

iStock/Lisa5201(NEW YORK) — A new poll shows that Americans spend more than 6,259 hours a year on their digital devices, an average of 382,652 hours and 48 minutes in an average lifespan. And screen time has only grown during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The non-scientific poll of 2,000 adults, commissioned by for Vision Direct, also revealed that three quarters of all those Americans polled say they would have been lost without their screens in this time of social distancing.

Up to four-and-a-half hours a day on average are spent watching TV during lockdown. Five hours are spent on laptops, four hours and 33 minutes on smartphones, and three hours and 12 minutes using gaming devices. All of those figured represent jumps from pre-pandemic numbers, with the biggest jump — 39 minutes — seen in TV viewing.

While citizens spent about 17 hours a day on screens overall pre-lockdown, that number jumped to 19 during lockdown. In fact, 75% of us say we’d be “lost” without our comforting screens, the poll finds.

Twenty percent of those polled say once their screens are on, they never take a break from them throughout the day, with six in 10 adults saying their screen time habits have caused static in their relationships.

And while studies have shown that those millions of workers who have turned to remote work are in fact more productive than when they’re in the office, this poll shows some remote workers’ gadgets are making them feel less productive.

More than half say they take breaks from work by checking Facebook, 42% say they find themselves watching YouTube, and 10% admitted to ducking into Twitter while working.