The average person uses some form of internet-connected device 34 times a day, according to new research.
More than half of smartphone owners turn to their phone rather than have "downtime", and more than one in three check their phone when there is a lull in conversation, the report from the Internet Advertising Bureau (IAB) said.
The study draws on 700 hours of video footage from consumers wearing FishEye cameras, which took a picture every five seconds over a three-day period, revealing that those surveyed picked up or used a connected device such as a smartphone, laptop or tablet on average 34 times each day.
Those who took part in the study averaged a total of two hours and 12 minutes a day using a connected device, while for 46% of this time they were using at least two devices, and sometimes three, simultaneously.
More than half of smartphone users (52%) said they prefer to check their smartphone if they have any "downtime" rather than sit and think.
The figure rises to 62% among 18 to 30-year-olds.
More than one third (37%) said they check their smartphone if there is a lull in conversation with friends, while 44% said their smartphone makes their commute more enjoyable.
And one in six (17%) smartphone owners said their phone had played some role - either browsing, researching or buying - in a purchase made in the previous fortnight.
IAB director of research and strategy Tim Elkington said: "One thing that stood out in the study was how surprised respondents were when told how frequently they'd looked at their phone, tablet or computer.
"It reinforces how normal 'omni-screening' - being just an arm's length away from some device that gets us online - has become.
"We also saw a broad pattern in how people use their devices. The morning is about getting information such as weather and travel, the afternoon for undertaking specific tasks such as banking or paying bills, while the evening is focused on entertainment, including shopping."
Dr Simon Hampton, lecturer in psychology at the University of East Anglia, said: "People's inability to leave their phones alone is the newest addition to common displacement behaviours such as smoking, doodling, fiddling with objects and picking at food.
"It's also an extension of 'nomophobia' - the fear of being without your mobile.
"Rather than do nothing we're compelled to turn to them for reassuring comfort. What's exciting for marketers is that, unlike most of the examples above, this mildly compulsive behaviour might be exploited to encourage purchasing, particularly as digital increasingly blurs the line between shopping and entertainment."
:: Firefish polled 1,376 UK adults in September.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article