New research has revealed that while smartphones may have set us free from our desks and turned us into instant photographers, it has given rise to an insidious new problem – deemed ‘FOSO’ (fear of switching off).

The study, conducted by YouGov Galaxy and commissioned by Red Agency, found that 85 per cent of full-time workers now regularly check their work-related emails outside of work hours.

The amount of time young people spend staring at screens is the biggest technology worry for Australians in 2018, with 64 per cent concerned about what Red Agency has dubbed the ‘head down generation’ – moving through life with their faces seemingly permanently buried in their devices.

The Red Sky Predictions report, which puts a spotlight on the marketing and communications industry, highlights that 84 per cent have slept with a mobile phone in our bedroom, including 61 per cent who have it by their side most nights.

Millennials are the most likely to take their device to bed, with 79 per cent sleeping with it and 60 per cent checking social media in bed most nights.

There is a price to pay with personal phone use and that of others leaving us wired and tired, buoyed and annoyed; 73 per cent who sleep with a mobile phone in the bedroom have had their sleep interrupted (apart from alarms).

When it comes to device-driven anti-social behaviour, 88 per cent have been on the receiving end of other people texting during a conversation or using their phone while having dinner (87 per cent).

The results also uncovered that for 19 per cent of Millennials, the switch to ditch the screen lasts mere minutes.

Regardless of age, most of us can’t sustain a long-term change in habitual screen staring, with less than one in 10 able to maintain a digital diet of reduced online screen time for a whole week.

Red Agency CEO James Wright said the study highlights that while the hands-free nature of mobile devices has made an ‘on-the-go’ lifestyle a reality, the device itself has become so intrinsic to daily social functioning that we’re unable to check out.

“Our new research highlights there is an uncontrollable need to always remain connected to the digital world. We have become a ‘head down generation’,” he said.

“Some are going as far as sleeping with the ‘enemy’, with mobile phones a standard staple in the bedroom – our go-to first thing in the morning and the last thing we say goodnight to before bed. As a nation, we clearly can’t help ourselves.”

Wright said we should be aware of the hyper-state of being ‘always-on’ that has given rise to FOSO and has made Australians focus on the digital world rather than physical.

“Although we’re seemingly growing more connected as a global society through the bridge that is the digital sphere, we’re missing real time opportunities to engage with our co-workers, communities and families,” he said.