“You phubbed me for that?” Reason given for phubbing and perceptions of interactional quality and exclusion

No evidence for adult smartphone use affecting attribution of communicative intention in toddlers: Online imitation study using the Sock Ball Task

Adults infer others' communicative intentions, or lack thereof, from various types of information. Young children may be initially limited to attributions based on a small set of ostensive signals. It is unknown when richer pragmatic inferences about communicative intentions emerge in development. We sought novel type of evidence for such inferences in 17-to-19-month-olds. We hypothesized that toddlers recognize adults' smartphone use in face-to-face interactions as incongruous with ostension and would rely on this interpretation when inferring the communicative intention of a model in a new imitation task conducted entirely online, dubbed the Sock Ball Task. In Experiment 1 with a between-subject design, we tested the hypothesis by assessing toddlers' (N = 48) imitation of sub-efficient means and the goal-outcome presented by a model, who interrupted her ostensive demonstration either by using a smartphone or by fiddling with her wristwatch, depending on the condition. We expected toddlers to imitate the sub-efficient means more faithfully in the wristwatch condition than in the smartphone condition. But there was no significant effect of condition on imitation of neither means nor goal. Thus, our hypothesis was not borne out by the results. In Experiment 2, using a within-subject design, we first assessed toddlers' (N = 24) performance in a no-demonstration baseline and then again after a no-disruption ostensive demonstration. In all three conditions with ostensive demonstration (Experiment 1: smartphone, wristwatch; Experiment 2: no-disruption), toddlers produced the demonstrated sub-efficient means significantly above the baseline level. In the no-disruption condition, goals were also imitated significantly above the baseline level. We conclude that the Sock Ball Task is a valid research tool for studying toddler imitation of novel means actions with objects. We end by discussing suggestions for improving the task in future studies.

Well-Being Implications of Digital Social Multitasking in Adolescent Friendship: A Latent Profile Analysis

Adolescents' phone use during face-to-face interactions (i.e., digital social multitasking [DSMT]) has gained increasing attention because of its prevalence as well as implications for well-being. However, most studies have focused on only one dimension of the behavior and relied on variable-centered approaches. Informed by the DSMT framework, we adopted a person-centered approach to identify different groups of adolescents based on their levels, perceptions, and motives of phone use during face-to-face interactions with friends. We also examined how these groups differed in five well-being variables (loneliness, depressive symptoms, digital stress, friendship quality, and satisfaction of basic psychological needs). A total of 517 adolescents (Mage = 14.83, standard deviation [SD] = 1.93; 50 percent female) completed an online survey. Three profiles were identified: the Intentional (low levels, quite positive perceptions, motivated for clear goals), the Embracers (high levels, highly positive perceptions, strong motives), and the Unimpressed (low levels, low positive perceptions, low motives). The Embracers scored the highest on both positive and negative indicators of well-being, whereas the Unimpressed scored the lowest on all well-being scales. The Intentional appeared to be the most adaptive group. Implications are discussed.

Psychosocial and personality trait associates of phubbing and being phubbed in hispanic emerging adult college students

Phubbing is when one uses their smartphone in a social interaction instead of interacting with the other individual(s) in their presence. Phubbing and being phubbed are growing concerns as the number of smartphones and frequency of smartphone use increases. This study assessed the relationships between phubbing, being phubbed, psychosocial constructs, and socially adverse personality traits among Hispanic emerging adult college students. Hispanic college students (n = 452) completed a survey assessing: sociodemographics, phubbing, being phubbed, depression, anxiety, stress, Machiavellianism, narcissism, psychopathy, and need for drama (interpersonal manipulation, impulsive outspokenness, persistent perceived victimhood). Hispanic emerging adult college students reported low-to-moderate levels of phubbing and being phubbed. Regarding phubbing findings, nomophobia (fear of separation from one's phone), interpersonal conflict, and problem acknowledgement were positively associated with negative affect. Moreover, interpersonal conflict, self-isolation, and problem acknowledgement were positively associated with interpersonal manipulation. Regarding being phubbed findings, perceived norms, feeling ignored, and interpersonal conflict were positively associated with persistent perceived victimhood. Findings indicate that Hispanic college students may use their smartphones in social settings to alleviate negative affect. Moreover, a virtual environment on a smartphone may be easier to manipulate and can be used to continue garnering attention and portraying oneself as the victim, fulfilling one's need for drama. Regarding exploratory mediations, phubbing and being phubbed mediated the relationships between multiple socially adverse personality traits and negative affect. The clinical implications of these results are discussed. Prospective studies are warranted to determine temporality.

Supplementary information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12144-023-04767-y.

Impact of partner phubbing on negative emotions: a daily diary study of mitigating factors

Interactions between romantic partners may be disturbed by a co-present mobile phone use when a partner ignores their interaction partner in favor of a smartphone. This common practice, called phubbing, promotes social rejection and exclusion, hence the partner who gets phubbed may report negative emotional experiences. However, these experiences may be buffered by a cognitive perception mechanism, when the partner’s behavior is still perceived as responsive (i.e., understanding or validating). Thus, we hypothesize that feeling understood or validated moderate the link between phubbing intensity and negative emotions. To test our hypotheses, we conducted a daily diary study over seven days, using a sample of N = 133 participants living with their partner. Multilevel modeling was applied, to examine between- and within-person processes. The findings indicate that perception of the partner as understanding and validating, despite the co-present mobile phone use, reduces the negative emotional experiences during phubbing, and the interaction effects indicate nuances between phubbing and understanding and validation by partner, which extend our theoretical comprehension and distinguish between the two as separate relationship-related constructs. Our research provides a unique insight into how mechanisms related to couple interactions may reduce negative experiences, a finding that may be useful in future interventions and couples' therapy.

Mediating and moderating effects of cognitive flexibility in the relationship between social media addiction and phubbing

Presently, social media is widely used worldwide among different populations. Therefore, phubbing rapidly became a popular phenomenon in our daily life. However, little is known about the underlying mechanism and interaction between social media use and phubbing. Therefore, this research examines the mediating and moderating role of cognitive flexibility in the association between social media addiction and phubbing. Participants were 385 university students (280 females) studying at a state university in eastern Turkey and completed the self-reported measures of cognitive flexibility, social media addiction, and phubbing. The results showed that cognitive flexibility mediated and moderated the effect of social media addiction on phubbing. These findings may contribute to the discussion around the psychological consequences of using social media alongside increasing awareness about factors affecting and explaining the association between social media use and phubbing, which have important implications for research and practice.

Moment-to-Moment Observation of Parental Media Use and Parent-Child Interaction: Quality and Media Multitasking

Mobile media proliferation throughout society has infused and complicated environments that formerly were interaction rich (e.g., waiting rooms, restaurants, and playgrounds) with the presence of smart devices. Ethnographic studies have indicated that parental use negatively impacts parent-child interaction quality. The current study reviews and expands on previous research through observing systematically parent-child interaction quality throughout the course of an entire meal (30-140 minutes). Utilizing five-minute intervals, across 93 parent-child dyads, we assessed both within- and between-person moment-to-moment changes in parenting quality (i.e., parental positivity, negativity, and engagement) in the context of parental media use. Between-person, only positivity appeared to decrease when comparing low and high parental media use. Within-person findings indicated that when the parent demonstrated higher than their typical media use, we noted a significant decrease in the quality of engagement and positivity. Differing from ethnographic studies, no change in negativity was identified within-person. Utilizing a lagged interval analysis, we identified a pattern of increased parental engagement with their child following intervals with parental media use, identifying a pattern of parental media multitasking heretofore only observed in ethnographic studies. Implications of findings in the context of previous research and future directions are discussed.

Feeling Ostracized by Others' Smartphone Use: The Effect of Phubbing on Fundamental Needs, Mood, and Trust

With phubbing (i.e., "The act of snubbing someone… by looking at your phone instead of paying attention") being a widespread phenomenon, a sound understanding of its emotional reverberations and consequences for interpersonal relationships is required. To the extent that phubbing is perceived as a momentary act of ostracism, it should influence both emotional and behavioral reactions. To address this issue empirically, we investigated effects of phubbing on variables previously shown to be affected by ostracism. Specifically, we examined in two studies how being phubbed affects participants' mood, satisfaction of fundamental needs, feelings of being ostracized (Study 1 and 2) and trust (Study 2). In Study 1, participants remembered a situation in which they were either phubbed, phubbed someone else or experienced an attentive conversation. In Study 2 different phubbing behaviors were manipulated during an ongoing conversation. Results from both studies suggest that phubbing triggers negative mood and feelings of ostracism, and threatens fundamental needs. Study 2 revealed that these effects were stronger when phubbing occurred three times (vs. once). Study 2 further demonstrated behavioral consequences of phubbing, namely that trust in a trust game was reduced when participants were phubbed three times (vs. once). We discuss conceptual and practical implications of smartphone use for emotion regulation and interpersonal relations.

Examining boss phubbing and employee outcomes through the lens of affective events theory

Purpose

In this study, the impact of boss phubbing, or using a phone during interaction with subordinates, on important employee outcomes — work meaningfulness and employee phubbing behavior — through the mediating role of self-esteem threat was investigated using affective events theory. The moderating role of rejection sensitivity was also examined.

Design/methodology/approach

Data were collected in three time lags from head nurses (N = 178) working in public and private hospitals. The hypothesized relationships were tested using variance-based structural equation modeling with partial least squares.

Findings

Boss phubbing negatively affected employees' sense of work meaningfulness and had a positive direct and indirect relationship with employee phubbing behavior through self-esteem threat. The hypothesized moderating role of rejection sensitivity was not supported.

Practical implications

The authors recommend that organizations develop policies addressing boss phubbing in the workplace, particularly in contexts in which a high leader–member exchange is desired for organizational effectiveness, such as health-related services. Superiors, such as doctors, should review their mobile phone usage during interactions with subordinates because it is detrimental to employee outcomes.

Originality/value

This study is a nascent attempt to test the hypothesized relationships on the emerging phenomenon of phubbing at work in the human–computer interaction domain in Pakistan, a developing country, particularly in hospital settings where a high leader–member exchange is pivotal.