Question of the Day: Are You Addicted to Your Smartphone?

More than a third of the American people own a Smartphone, according to a recent Pew study about Smartphone adoption and usage.

And of the people who own one, 25 percent of them are using the Smartphone as their primary means of going online. By taking photos, streaming music, providing email and phone services, these all-in-one devices fulfill the role of what four or five separate devices used to do.

The Smartphone's utility may be leading Americans to an increasing dependence on the devices—some psychologists are saying obsession, according to a story published yesterday on The Huffington Post.

Writer Ellen Gibson interviewed Lisa Merlo, director of psychotherapy training at the University of Florida.

"Watching people who get their first smartphone, there's a very quick progression from having a basic phone you don't talk about to people who love their iPhone, name their phone and buy their phones outfits," said Lisa Merlo, director of psychotherapy training at the University of Florida.

And, according to the Pew Research Center, "the feeling of missing out on something causes some people to even sleep next to their phones. Of the 35 percent of Americans who own them, two-thirds sleep with their phone next to their heads."

Where is your phone right now? Are you reading this story on your phone? If you're on a computer, is your phone close by?

Here's our Question for Today:

Are you addicted to your Smartphone? Do you feel the need to unplug? What are strategies you have for keeping your Smartphone use in check—or do you feel that's not necessary?