  The impact of digital device use on health and well-being is a pressing
question to which individuals, families, schools, policy makers, legislators,
and digital designers are all demanding answers. However, the scientific
literature on this topic to date is marred by small and/or unrepresentative
samples, poor measurement of core constructs (e.g., device use, smartphone
addiction), and a limited ability to address the psychological and behavioral
mechanisms that may underlie the relationships between device use and
well-being. A number of recent authoritative reviews have made urgent calls for
future research projects to address these limitations. The critical role of
research is to identify which patterns of use are associated with benefits
versus risks, and who is more vulnerable to harmful versus beneficial outcomes,
so that we can pursue evidence-based product design, education, and regulation
aimed at maximizing benefits and minimizing risks of smartphones and other
digital devices. We describe a protocol for a Digital Well-Being (DWB) study to
help answer these questions.
