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Article posted: 12/1/2012 7:51 AM

Wired South Korea to stem digital addiction from age 3

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A passenger plays a game with a smartphone on a subway in Seoul, South Korea. Across the entire population, South Korea's government estimated 2.55 million people are addicted to smartphones, using the devices for 8 hours a day or more, in its first survey of smartphone addiction released earlier this year.

Associated Press/November 2012

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Smartphones collected from students are placed in a plastic basket during a class at Chilbo elementary school in Suwon, South Korea. Students agreed to hand in their smartphones when they arrive at school in the morning and get them back when they leave for home after classes.

Associated Press/November 2012

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Park Jung-in, an 11-year-old South Korean, sleeps with her Android smartphone instead of a teddy bear. When the screen beams with a morning alarm, she wakes up, picks up her glasses and scrolls through tens of unread messages from friends, shaking off drowsiness. In South Korea, where the government provides counseling programs and psychological treatment for an estimated 2 million people who cannot wean themselves from playing online computer games, youngsters such as Park have previously not been considered as potential addicts.