Impact of Phone Addiction Distress Among Selected Small and Medium Enterprises in Kiambu and Nairobi City Counties

The increasing incidence of mobile phone addiction has been considered to be related to adolescents’ psychological distress and work distress. However, the underlying mechanisms of this relation are still unclear. Many employees are not able to cope with daily chores due to addiction to phone use as they continue with their work. Most employees are caught up and carried away from concentrating on core activities, hence affecting their productivity at work and also creating social-emotional distress among them. Many small and medium enterprises (SMEs) have employed youth, who are addicted to their phone use following up on their WhatsApp, TikTok, SMS, Instagram, Facebook, and emails. SMEs have been unable to have measures of control phone usage at work in order to have their employees concentrate with their work. This research is therefore motivated to bridge the gap in knowledge by analyzing the impact of phone addiction and distress among selected small and medium enterprises in Kiambu and Nairobi City Counties. The objectives of the study were to determine the extent of phone addiction among employees in SMEs in Kiambu and Nairobi City Counties, to establish various alternatives of phone addiction control measures among the employees in Kiambu and Nairobi City Counties. The target population of this study considered small and medium enterprises. The sample population size included SMEs in Kiambu and Nairobi City Counties in Kenya. The study adopted a descriptive research design and used primary data, which involved a questionnaire and interview guild from the Key informants. The findings were presented and published to provide alternatives to solve the future challenges of phone addiction psychological and social-emotional distress among employees, work-related distress, and organizational work distress. The findings reveal that respondents exhibit signs of phone addiction distress. Excessive phone use negatively affects their emotional well-being and leads to feelings of being emotionally drained. The study also uncovered a link between phone addiction and behavioral dysfunctions. Furthermore, phone addiction was found to impact organizational performance by hindering work efficiency, communication with clients, and collaboration among employees.