Why can't we be separated from our smartphones? The vital roles of smartphone activity in smartphone separation anxiety

Phubbing and its impact on the individual's psychological well-being

Increasingly, smartphones have become a part of people's everyday lives, and are now considered by many to be an indispensable social accessory. Since attachment to a smartphone could have negative psychological consequences, a burgeoning new area of research has emerged which examines the effects of smartphones on individuals' well-being. Hence, this study focuses on phubbing - one's engagement with the smartphone during a face-to-face conversation with another person or group of people - and its association with psychological well-being. For this investigation, a quantitative descriptive approach has been adopted involving a sample of 370 women and men from Spain between 25 and 60 years old. The survey was distributed during late 2019 and the first quarter of 2020. The Phubbing Behaviors Survey was conducted, comprising five dimensions (cultural, technological, social, communicational, and psychological), and a total of 33 items requiring responses on a 5-point Likert scale. This survey was used in conjunction with the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-28), consisting of four categories (somatic symptoms, social dysfunction, anxiety and insomnia, and severe depression), and 7 items per category. The findings reveal a positive correlation between phubbing and severe depression and, young women under 25 years old show higher levels of somatic symptoms than men in the same age group. This study demonstrates the need to raise awareness via health education and to promote healthy use of the Internet to prevent psychological distress resulting from phubbing.

A moderated chain mediation model examining the relation between smartphone addiction and intolerance of uncertainty among master's and PhD students

The theories of relational regulation and compensatory Internet use suggest that intolerance of uncertainty influences smartphone addiction (SPA), which in turn is influenced by other aspects. This study used previous results to examine how intolerance of uncertainty affects SPA in PhD and master's degree programs. A convenience sample comprising 1727 master's and PhD students (99.9 %; 50.7 % female; Mage = 27.71; SD = 3.80; range = 21-43) was recruited. Using established questionnaires, we measured SPA, anxiety, positive coping style, perceived social support, and intolerance of uncertainty. The results demonstrated that intolerance of uncertainty positively affects SPA in terms of predictive power. Furthermore, anxiety and positive coping style mediate that link in a cascade fashion. A greater SPA indicates that the individual is less likely to use a positive coping style, has a higher anxiety level, and has a lower tolerance for uncertainty. While thinking about how intolerance of uncertainty affects anxiety and positive coping style, perceived social support mediates the relationship. Intolerance of uncertainty has less impact on anxiety and positive coping style when perceived social support is high. These results indicate the possibility of examining SPA prevention and intervention from several angles. Therefore, emotional regulation, which modifies anxiety and the tendency to use a positive coping style, may reduce the impact of intolerance of uncertainty on SPA. Another successful strategy for reducing smartphone addiction is to provide social support from loved ones and the community at large.

The effect of nomophobic behaviors among nurses on their clinical decision-making perceptions

AIM

This study aimed to explore the impact of nomophobic behaviors among hospital nurses on their clinical decision-making perceptions. This understanding can offer insights to enhance the work environment, improve the clinical decision-making ability of nurses and guide medical institutions in the management of related equipment and policy development.

BACKGROUND

The term "nomophobia" refers to the anxiety and fear individuals experience when they cannot use their smartphones or when smartphones are not accessible. Nursing clinical decision-making is a complex process, including a meticulous assessment of the patient's pathological condition and medical history, alongside the application of nursing knowledge and experiential learning rooted in critical thinking. The concept of clinical decision-making perceptions is defined as a deliberate cognitive understanding of one's decision-making processes, which significantly influences the clinical decision-making capabilities of healthcare professionals, thereby impacting the quality of patient care. The factors influencing these clinical decision-making perceptions have been the subject of extensive research. However, there is no Chinese research on the impact of nurses ' nomophobic behaviors on their clinical decision-making perception.

DESIGN

A cross-sectional descriptive survey using online-based delivery modes was used.

METHODS

A descriptive cross-sectional survey design was employed. Using convenience sampling, we surveyed the nurses from a tertiary hospital in Nanjing in May 2023. Data were gathered using a sociodemographic data form, the Nomophobia Questionnaire and the Clinical Decision-Making in Nursing Scale. Techniques including the independent sample t-test, one-way ANOVA, Pearson correlation analysis and linear regression analysis were employed to probe the degree of nomophobia and its effects on their perception of clinical decision-making. Out of 284 questionnaires gathered, 272 were deemed valid, resulting in a 95.8% effective response rate.

RESULTS

The data revealed that participants exhibited a medium level of nomophobia (54.01 ± 24.09) and clinical decision-making perceptions (144.94 ± 20.08). A robust negative correlation was discerned between nomophobia and clinical decision-making perceptions (r: -0.365, P<0.001). This study highlighted that as the degree of nomophobia intensified, nurses' clinical decision-making perceptions decreased with the increase in nomophobia.

CONCLUSION

Nomophobic behaviors can hamper nurses' perception of clinical decision-making, potentially leading to inaccuracies or errors. Nurses must use mobile phones judiciously, practice self-regulation and mitigate the disruptive effects of nomophobia on their decision-making. In addition, medical institutions should foster relevant education or craft policies to regularize mobile phone use, augmenting nurses' efficiency and decision-making prowess, enhancing patient care quality, diminishing medical errors and ensuring patient health and safety.

Attachment Anxiety and Nomophobia: A Moderated Parallel Mediation Model

Nomophobia is the state of being anxious or disturbed when feeling disconnected from the digital world and can have a significant impact on individuals' health and well-being. Drawing upon attachment theory and the previous literature on nomophobia, this study aims to understand how attachment anxiety influences nomophobia and whether this relationship differs between males and females. In the Human Penguin Project (HPP) (N = 1221; 12 countries; participants aged ≥20 years), the Experiences in Close Relationships Questionnaire-Revised (ECR-R), the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20), the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), and the Nomophobia Questionnaire (NMP-Q) were used to assess attachment anxiety, alexithymia, perceived stress, and nomophobia, respectively. The results demonstrated that (1) there were significant positive correlations between attachment anxiety, nomophobia, alexithymia, and perceived stress. Additionally, (2) there was a direct and significant effect of attachment anxiety on nomophobia, and alexithymia and perceived stress partially mediated this relationship. Finally, (3) gender significantly moderated the relationship between attachment anxiety and nomophobia. Specifically, the predicted effect was significant in both males and females, but the direct effect of attachment anxiety and nomophobia was stronger in males.

The Effect of Loneliness on Nomophobia: A Moderated Mediation Model

A large number of studies have shown that loneliness is a positive predictor of nomophobia (no mobile phobia), but little research has examined the mechanism of this association. Drawing on attachment theory, the present study constructs a moderated mediation model to examine whether smartphone attachment mediates the relation between loneliness and nomophobia and whether this mediating process is moderated by attachment anxiety. A total of 598 college students in China were recruited to complete a questionnaire to measure loneliness, smartphone attachment, attachment anxiety, and nomophobia. A moderated mediation analysis was conducted. Our findings revealed that after controlling for gender, loneliness is positively associated with nomophobia. Meanwhile, smartphone attachment plays a mediating role in the relationship between loneliness and nomophobia. Furthermore, attachment anxiety moderates the mediated path through smartphone attachment, such that an indirect effect is much stronger for individuals with higher attachment anxiety relative to those with low attachment anxiety. The present study provides new insight into the complex processes in the association between loneliness and nomophobia, and the results have important theoretical and practical implications.

Psychometric Evidence of the Arabic Version of Nomophobia Questionnaire Among Physical Education Students

Purpose

Nomophobia refers to a psychological state in which individuals experience anxiety or fear at the thought of being disconnected from their mobile phone. The Nomophobia Questionnaire was developed to assess dimensions of nomophobia among native English-speaking populations. The purpose of this study was to adapt and validate the Nomophobia Questionnaire in the Tunisian context based on Western Arabic dialects.

Methods

This cross-sectional design using a non-probability sampling method was conducted from September 05 to October 06, 2022. A total of 644 participants, with an average age of 21.04 ± 1.59 years, completed a sociodemographic questionnaire and an Arabic version of the Nomophobia Questionnaire. Participants were divided into two groups to perform exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis. The first group consisted of 200 students (56% female and 44% male with an average age of 21.10 ± 1.64), with 33% (n = 66) freshmen, 41.5% second-year students (n = 83) and 25.5% (n = 51) of third-year students. The second group was collected one month later in the same establishment and was composed of 444 students (52% men and 48% female with an average age of 21.01 ± 1.57).

Results

The results of the exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis showed that the 20 items and the second order four-factor structure should be retained. Confirmatory factor analysis of the Arabic version of the NMP-Q gave the following statistics: χ2/df= 1.47; Fit Index = 0.997; Adjusted goodness-of-fit index = 0.996; Tucker-Lewis index = 1.003; Comparative Fit Index = 1; Root mean square error of approximation = 0.000 (90% CI 0-0) and standardized mean residual = 0.030, indicating good model fit. McDonald's ω internal consistency indexes for the four factors, namely giving up convenience, not being able to access information, not being able to communicate, and losing connectedness were 0.821, 0.841, 0.851, and 0.897, respectively. These values demonstrated good scale consistency.

Conclusion

The Arabic Version of the Nomophobia questionnaire has been found to be a reliable and valid psychometric tool, and can be effectively used to measure nomophobia in countries where western Arabic dialects are spoken.

Mother phubbing and adolescents' problematic SNS use: the mediating role of perceived burdensomeness and the moderating role of need to belong

There is a rapidly growing academic interest on parental phubbing, however, little research has explored the association between mother phubbing and adolescent problematic social networking sites use (PSNSU), the underlying mediating and moderating effects in this relationship are also in need to be uncovered. The present study examined whether mother phubbing would be positively related to adolescent PSNSU, whether perceived burdensomeness would mediate this relationship, and whether need to belong would moderate the associations between mother phubbing and adolescent PSNSU. The hypothesized research model was examined among 3,915 Chinese adolescents (47% of them were boys, mean age = 16.42 ± 0.77 years). The results showed that mother phubbing was positively associated with adolescent PSNSU and perceived burdensomeness mediated this association. Furthermore, need to belong moderated the relationship between perceived burdensomeness and PSNSU, the relationship between mother phubbing and perceived burdensomeness, and the relationship between mother phubbing and PSNSU.

Smartphone addiction is more harmful to adolescents than Internet gaming disorder: Divergence in the impact of parenting styles

Background

The adverse effects of smartphone addiction (SPA) and Internet gaming disorder (IGD) on adolescents' mental health have been widely recognized. However, the influence of parenting styles on these high-risk Internet use behaviors of adolescents still remain elusive. Aiming to identify preventable patterns for adolescents with SPA or IGD, this study compared the mental health status between adolescents with SPA and IGD and used path analysis to confirm actual effects of parenting styles on SPA and IGD.

Methods

Participants were enrolled at a junior high school in Hunan Province and a senior high school in Shanxi Province, China [n = 3,049, female (male): 50.5% (49.5%), mean age = 15.68 ± 1.54]. All participants reported their socio-demographic characteristics and undertook standardized assessments of SPA, IGD, parenting styles, depression, anxiety, insomnia, self-control, and support utilization.

Results

High levels of parental care and low levels of parental overprotection benefited adolescents' mental health with SPA and IGD. However, despite having a more positive parenting style, adolescents with only SPA showed more severe mental health problems than adolescents with only IGD. Furthermore, the results showed that the parenting style of encouraging autonomy might be a protective factor against IGD, but it might reinforce SPA indirectly by reducing abilities of support utilization and self-control in whole sample.

Conclusion

Compared to IGD, SPA which included different kinds of Internet addiction behaviors, was more hazardous for adolescents' mental health. The divergent effects of an autonomy-encouraging parenting style on SPA and IGD may reflect the different impacts of self-control in different types of Internet addiction.

Exploring digital natives' mobile addiction syndrome in Taiwan: psychological issues and beyond

Purpose

This study seeks to explore digital natives' mobile usage behaviors and, in turn, develop an analytic framework that helps articulate the underlying components of mobile addiction syndrome (MAS), its severity levels and mobile usage purposes.

Design/methodology/approach

The investigation adopts a survey method and a case study. The results of the former are based on 411 random classroom observations and 205 questionnaire responses, and the insights of the latter are derived from 24 interviews and daily observations.

Findings

The findings validate five distinctive signs that constitute MAS and their significant correlations with each of the Big Five personality traits. Classroom observations confirm the prevalence of addiction tendency among digital natives in the research context. Seven levels of MAS and six different mobile usage purposes further manifest themselves from case analysis. There appears to be a sharp contrast between the addicted and non-addicted groups in their mobile purposes and behavioral patterns. Additionally, family relationships seem influential in shaping non-addictive mobile usage behaviors.

Research limitations/implications

Psychological perspectives on MAS may be important but insufficient. Empirical investigation on a global scale, especially with distinctive cross-cultural comparisons, will be highly encouraged. How MAS evolves over time should also serve as future research interests.

Practical implications

Teaching pedagogy of college education might need certain adjustments to intrigue digital natives' learning interests. Future managers might also need to adopt better performance measurements for digital natives who barely separate work from personal matters in their mobile devices.

Social implications

Parents and healthcare institutions may need to develop response mechanism to tackle this global issue at home and in society. The long-term effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on MAS might also deserve global attention.

Originality/value

The analytic framework developed provides an original mechanism that can be valuable in identifying MAS severity and associated behavioral patterns.

The Relationship between Extensive Application of Technology and “Withdrawal from Nature” of Young People

The aim of this study is to explore the relationship between the extensive application of technology and young people’s “withdrawal from nature”. Among them, “withdrawal from nature” is mainly manifested in a reduced connection with and concern for nature. Two rounds of semi-structured interviews were conducted with 101 young people from China. Thematic analysis was performed to analyze the interview data and resulted in three main themes: the “compensation”, “shifting” and “shielding” effects of technology. More specifically, the application of technology can partially make up for nature’s reduced role in the growth of young people, shift their concerns for ecological problems, and even affect their perception and evaluation of ecological destruction. Thus, it was proved that the application of technology has an impact on young people’s “withdrawal from nature”. This study supplemented the current research on the factors that influence young people’s “withdrawal from nature” and also provided inspiration for better establishing the connection between young people and nature.

College students’ attachment to their smartphones: a subjective operant approach

Background

Smartphone use has become a pervasive aspect of youth daily life today. Immersive engagement with apps and features on the smartphone may lead to intimate and affectionate human-device relationships. The purpose of this research is to holistically dissect the ranked order of the various dimensions of college students’ attachment to the smartphones through the by-person factorial analytical power of Q methodology.

Methods

Inspired by extant research into diverse aspects of human attachment to the smartphones, a concourse of 50 statements pertinent to the functional, behavioral, emotional and psychological dimensions of human-smartphone attachment were pilot tested and developed. A P sample of 67 participants completed the Q sort based on respective subjective perceptions and self-references. Data was processed utilizing the open-source Web-based Ken-Q Analysis software in detecting the main factorial structure.

Results

Five distinct factor (persona) exemplars were identified illustrating different pragmatic, cognitive and attitudinal approaches to smartphone engagement. They were labeled mainstream users, disciplined conventionalists, casual fun-seekers, inquisitive nerds, and sentient pragmatists in response to their respective psycho-behavioral traits. There were clear patterns of similarity and divergence among the five personas.

Conclusion

The typological diversity points to the multiplicate nature of human-smartphone attachment. Clusters of cognitive, behavioral and habitual patterns in smartphone engagement driving each persona may be a productive area of exploration in future research in exploring their respective emotional and other outcomes. The concurrent agency of nomophobia and anthropomorphic attribution is an intriguing line of academic inquiry.

Fear of Missing Out (FOMO): The Effects of the Need to Belong, Perceived Centrality, and Fear of Social Exclusion

“Fear of Missing Out” (FOMO) is an all-consuming feeling that is associated with mental and emotional stress. Such strains are caused by a compulsive concern that one is missing an opportunity for a socially rewarding experience often spotted on social media networks. While several personality and psychological factors have been empirically validated as correlated with FOMO, so far, little research has examined the effects of perceived group centrality (i.e., the extent to which group members feel included in the group) and fear of social exclusion on FOMO. Therefore, this study is aimed at examining the mechanism that links these socially driven factors and the need to belong with social media use and, consequently, FOMO, using structural equation modeling. A total of 490 college students ( $\text{mean}\text{age}=20.56,\text{SD}=1.44$ ) completed a self-reported questionnaire that included measures of FOMO, the need to belong, social media use, perceived centrality, and fear of social exclusion. The need to belong emerged as the best predictor of FOMO, increasing it both directly and indirectly through the significant mediation of social media use. Females reported a greater need to belong and consequently more FOMO. Females also reported greater use of social media and greater perceived group centrality. Perceived centrality increased FOMO through social media use, but this indirect effect was not significant.

Adaptation of the European Portuguese Version of the Nomophobia Questionnaire for Adolescents, Factor Structure and Psychometric Properties

Nomophobia can be defined as a digital age phobia consisting of an excessive fear of being without a smartphone. Nomophobia negatively impacts physical and mental health, particularly in children and adolescents. This study aimed to test the factor structure and psychometric properties of the European Portuguese version of the Nomophobia Questionnaire for Adolescents (NMP-Q-A). Sample 1 comprised 338 adolescents (58.6% girls), with a mean age of 13.55 (SD = 2.07) years old, and was used to examine the factor structure of the NMP-Q-A, its psychometric properties and the association with other constructs. Sample 2 included 193 adolescents (53.9% boys), with a mean age of 13.61 (SD = 0.80) years old and was used to further test the NMP-Q-A factor structure. One higher-order factor with four lower-order factors structure revealed a good fit to the data in both samples. The NMP-Q-A showed good reliability, construct and concurrent validity. Girls showed higher nomophobia. Adolescents showing more nomophobia revealed more smartphone addiction and psychopathological symptoms and lower quality of life. The NMP-Q-A showed to be a valid and reliable measure to be used in clinical and educational settings.

Smartphone Use and Psychological Well-Being Among College Students in China: A Qualitative Assessment

Background: Problematic smartphone use is widespread, and college-age youth faces an especially high risk of its associated consequences. While a promising body of research has emerged in recent years in this area, the domination of quantitative inquiries can be fruitfully and conceptually complemented by perspectives informed through qualitative research. Toward that end, this study aimed to interrogate the myriad behavioral, attitudinal, and psychological tendencies as a side effect of college students’ engagement with the smartphone in their everyday lived experience through in-depth interviews.

Methods: We recruited 70 participants from seven college campuses hailing from different geographic regions in China, and conducted semi-structured in-depth virtual interviews via WeChat in November and December 2020. Subjective experiences, personal narratives and individual perceptions in the context of routine interaction with the smartphone were thematically analyzed through a reiterative process in an effort to detect prevailing threads and recurring subthemes.

Results: The smartphone has established a pervasive presence in college students’ everyday life. Time-based use characteristics generated a typology of four distinct user groups: hypo-connected antagonists, balanced majority, hyper-connected enthusiasts, and indulgent zealots. Habitual usage falls on predictable patterns matched onto temporal, locale-based and contextual cues and triggers. Students’ dependency relationships with the smartphone have both functional and emotional dimensions, as prominently manifested in occasions of detachment from the device. Self-regulatory effort in monitoring and limiting use is significantly impacted by mental focus and personal goal setting. Perspectives from our qualitative data suggest the need for taking into account a variety of contextual cues and situational factors in dissecting psychological and emotional outcomes of smartphone use and abuse.

Assessing Mobile Phone Attachment: Validation of the Mobile Attachment Questionnaire in Turkish University Students and Examination of Related Variables

The main aim of this study was to adapt the Mobile Attachment Questionnaire (MAQ) to Turkish culture. It was also aimed to investigate whether mobile phone attachment (MPA) exists in Turkish university students and whether it has the main characteristics of interpersonal attachment. This study also aimed to investigate the MPA's relationship with nomophobia, smartphone addiction and materialism, and to examine the predictive power of them on MPA. The study group consisted of a total of 242 university students. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were conducted to determine the structural validity of the MAQ-TR. The goodness of fit indices met the model fit requirements for the four-factor 13-item MAQ-TR. Reliability analyses results provided high internal consistency coefficients. Correlation analyses results showed that individuals highly attached to their phones experienced more severe symptoms of nomophobia and smartphone addiction and materialists were more likely to accept their phones as attachment object. Regression analysis showed that nomophobia, smartphone addiction and materialism were significant predictors of MPA. Given that MPA is an understudied concept, this study provides a starting point for future researches on problematic and non-problematic phone use.

Psychometric properties of the Metacognitions about Smartphone Use Questionnaire (MSUQ) in a sample of iranians

Research has shown that metacognitions are associated with addictive behaviors. This study aimed to evaluate the psychometric properties (i.e., factor structure, reliability, and predictive validity) of the Persian Metacognitions about Smartphone Use Questionnaire (Persian MSUQ). A community sample of 618 participants (63.6% female, mean age = 27.31 ± 8.95 years; age range: 15-67 years) was recruited in Iran. The results of exploratory factor analysis revealed that the Persian MSUQ had a three-factor structure, similar to the parent version, named positive metacognitions about emotional and cognitive regulation, negative metacognitions about uncontrollability and cognitive harm, and positive metacognitions about social advantages. The confirmatory factor analysis indicated that the three-factor structure of the Persian MSUQ had appropriate fit. Cronbach's alphas for the three factors were 0.89, 0.88, and 0.70, respectively. Test-retest coefficients over a 6-week interval showed good reliability for the Persian MSUQ total score (ICC = 0.81; 95% CI: 0.72-0.87). Regression analyses showed that metacognitions about smartphone use predicted problematic smartphone use independently of anxiety and depression. The findings suggest that the Persian MSUQ has appropriate psychometric properties in the Iranian context.

The smarter, the better?! Customer well-being, engagement, and perceptions in smart service systems

Smart service systems – that is, configurations of smart products and service providers that deliver smart services – are striving to increase the smartness of their offering, but potential consequences for customer well-being are largely overlooked. Therefore, this research investigates the impact of smartness on customer well-being (here, self-efficacy and technology anxiety) through (1) customer engagement with different smart service system actors (here, smart products and service providers) and (2) customer perceptions (here, personalization and intrusiveness perceptions) and their associated importance (here, need for personalization and intrusiveness sensitivity). A scenario-based experiment (n  = 730) – which is preceded by a systematic review to conceptualize smartness – shows that customers perceive more personalization than intrusiveness in case of higher levels of smartness, resulting in customer engagement with the smart product and to some extent with the service provider. Via customer engagement with the smart product, higher levels of smartness stimulate self-efficacy, especially for customers with a high need for personalization. When customers' need for personalization is high and their intrusiveness sensitivity is low, higher levels of smartness also reduce technology anxiety via customer engagement with the smart product. Hence, the conclusion is: “The smarter, the better!”, whereby the relationship between smartness and well-being (here, self-efficacy and technological anxiety) is significantly influenced by customer heterogeneity. These findings help business practitioners in boosting customer well-being by increasing customer engagement through higher levels of smartness of their service system.

•Higher levels of smartness improve customer well-being through customer engagement. •Customers perceive more personalization than intrusiveness when smartness increases. •Personalization and intrusiveness affect engagement with smart service system actors. •Customer engagement with smart products boosts customer well-being. •Smartness–well-being relationship is subject to customer heterogeneity.

Use of the Smartphone and Self-Concept in University Students According to the Gender Variable

The university stage comprises a very important and vital period in the modification of students’ lifestyles, and these changes can affect their self-concept. The excessive use of technology today can also influence the formation of their identity. The aim of this study is to analyze the relationship between self-concept and the use of the smartphone by university students in terms of gender. The sample included 253 students (mean age 21.39 ± 3.27) of the Primary Education Degree of the University of Jaén (106 men and 147 women). A questionnaire was used to unify several instruments: a sociodemographic questionnaire, a Self-Concept Form-5 questionnaire (AF-5), and a questionnaire on cell phone-related experiences (CERM). The results show the existence of significant differences between both genders in the academic, emotional, and social dimensions of self-concept, with women showing a greater academic self-concept and men showing an emotional and physical one. Regarding the use of the smartphone in relation to self-concept, significant differences are found in the academic and emotional dimensions depending on the degree of use. In addition, in relation to the use of the smartphone, it has been detected that half of the students present potential problems. It is concluded that there is a relationship between both constructs, especially the academic and emotional self-concept.