Smartphone Addiction: New Study Reveals The Real Reason We Can't Put Our Phones Down 📲
Smartphone Addiction has become a real issue in the last few years.
Especially teenagers and millennials hardly go anywhere without some kind of device to stay connected, and new terms like "nomophobia" (fear of being without a phone) and "FoBo" (fear of being offline) have been coined to describe how dependent we have become.
Of course, there are countless reason for this addiction - we always want to stay up to date, we constantly want to be available / in touch with friends online, and we also enjoy being constantly entertained by new content on Instagram or Twitter.
But now, researchers in Hong Kong and Seoul may have discovered another factor that influences our addictive smartphone behaviour: personal memories.
Our phones are always available to take a snapshot of a memorable moment, and sometimes we just like to scroll through or gallery and look back on old photos in nostalgia, or share our memorable moments on social media.
Either way, our phones are an essential device to create, keep and share our personal memories.
And it's not only our own memories - apps are also becoming more and more personal. You can totally customize your phone depending on which apps you download, how you choose the design of your phone, etc. We have the option to make it our own.
This personal connection brings us even closer to them, and amplifies the separation anxiety that comes with it.
This even goes so far that we begin to view our smartphones as an extension of ourselves!
The Study
The study that connects smartphone addiction with personal memories was conducted by City University of Hong Kong and the Sungkyunkwan University in Seoul, and published in the journal Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking.
300 young adults in South Korea were first surveyed about the relationship with their smartphones.
And then depending on their answers, they were divided in a "high nomophobia" and a "low nomophobia" group.
Results
When asked about their smartphones, both groups stated that their phone was used as a medium for accessing information and entertainment, as well as communication.
But the high nomophobia group was more likely to answer the open-ended questions using words like “I,” “my,” “me,” and “part”, therefore signaling that they were more likely to view the phone as an extension of themselves.
They also used words like hurt,” “alone,” and “want,” when describing the 'meaning' of their smartphone to them, while people with low nomophobia responded with words like “game,” “comfortable,” “SMS,” and “efficient.”
The effects of smartphone addiction are clear: they have an impact on our lifestyle and even our bodies.
Participants of the high nomophobia group were more likely to experience neck- or wrist pain, and also more likely to get distracted by their phones.
This study proposes and validates a theoretical model that explicates a possible process in which smartphone users experience nomophobia. As smartphones evoke more personal memories, users extend more of their identity onto their smartphones.When users perceive smartphones as their extended selves, they are more likely to become attached to the devices, which, in turn, leads to nomophobia by heightening the phone proximity-seeking tendency.
Ironically, recent smartphone and application development seems to inevitably increase users' attachment, as the technology and related services become increasingly personalized and customizable.
This suggests that users should be conscious not to become overly dependent on smartphones while benefiting from the smartness of the technology.
Conclusion
So in conclusion, smartphone addiction doesn't erupt because we can't stop calling and texting people - it's more that smartphones have become a part of our personal lives.
We use them to create, store and share memories, and personalized features like automatic slideshows that highlight our favorite pictures make them feel much more customized.
This way, people experience smartphones as being an extension of their own self.
In return, the separation anxiety and 'nomophobia' grows.
These anxieties are real and the only way to fight them is to "unplug".
“Nomophobia, fear of missing out (FoMo), and fear of being offline (FoBo), -- all anxieties born of our new high-tech lifestyles -- may be treated similarly to other more traditional phobias. Exposure therapy, in the this case turning off technology periodically, can teach individuals to reduce anxiety and become comfortable with periods of disconnectedness.”-Dr. Brenda Wiederhold of the Interactive Media Institute
How would you describe your relationship with smartphones - are you experiencing "nomophobia" ?
© Sirwinchester
I don't use a phone at all and never really have. I did not like them when they were plugged into the wall. It's too hard for me to talk to people when I can't see them and I really have nothing to say that needs to be said on a phone.
One time I was on some kind of minutes plan with att for my house phone and had to talk to them to re-enlist in their plan. The lady was looking into what would be the best plan and said, "Do you even have this phone? I don't see any calls." I said, "Yes, I'm talking on it now."
I was married for the decade of the 1980's and talked to my ex on the phone 3 times in the whole marriage- all for emergencies. I used to work with women who talked to their husbands all day long at work. I never understood that.
I have had a couple of phones since people started carrying them around, but I never use them, never answer them, never look at them, and usually the battery is dead. The one I have now is only because the bank needed me to have it. After buying it - I have put about $7 into the minutes and never used them in 18 months.
Here is my plan that works well. I'm in Thailand. I am the only person in the entire country with no phone. If I need one - everyone has one and will help me. Once a guy Google mapped me to find my Embassy but that's it.
I most notice this on the subway. 90% of people are looking at their phones. Me and maybe one other person are not. It is so strange to see. The Thai people are very quiet, so if they are speaking into the phone I hear nothing. But mostly they are just looking down at it.
I always wonder what everyone is doing. I'm thinking in my head or looking at my surroundings. I have no one in another place I want to speak to and I'm glad for a break from my computer. I don't skype or anything like that here.
So- I'm pretty weird, but also pretty happy. If anyone needs me - I'm on the internet and I do answer my messages and emails quickly.
What I am noticing lately is corporations starting to require a phone app in order to do business with them. If I don't have the app on my phone - I can no longer use their service such as flight bookings. Oh well - hopefully this never really interferes with my life.
Wow, thanks for sharing! I think it's awesome how you continue your lifestyle like this, and you totally should if you enjoy it. You're standing out from the crowd!
And not in a good way! I prove it can be done, I guess. When the old fogies like me are gone - the phones will still be going strong, most likely.
Great post, upvoted and re-steemed.
"and we also enjoy being constantly entertained by new content on Instagram or Twitter."
This I believe is the root of the problem. Before it was TV, now its smartphones. The technology has advanced, but the function is the same: a tool to escape reality (the present moment).
Most people these days can't just be silent and present. Their attention always has to be directed towards some activity, conversation or thing. Westerners have forgotten what it's like to JUST BE!
We are becoming more like robots lol
This will happen more and more in the future!
Totally agree :)
Before I only use phone, to make call and to answer the call, some text too. Also I am not active in social media. But steemit is a game changer in my social life. Now 24/7 I have my android phone online. Read post, cast vote and write aome comment.
Looks like Steemit + smartphones may be the killer combo. Dan Larimer has killed us all! /s
True! I've heard that from so many people on here. steemit doesn't really count as social media, it's so different!
Really good post - It always makes me sad when I ride a public bus and all the kids are just starring at their phone. When somebody elderly enters they don't even get aware of that and therefore don't offer their sitting place to the elderly person who would need it much more. This is just one sad example!
Resteemed, I hope many get to read this - Cause the problem is everywhere!
Very true, I notice this a lot as well!
Great Study on relationship with smartphones
The things are a tool and nuisance to me. But I'm old. If I didn't need one for work, I'd only have one for emergencies when traveling.
The need for a 24/7 umbilical cord to the net is mind-boggling to me.
I actually remember a time before mobile phones and the main difference that I remember is that you had to be at the place you arranged to meet at on time and where you said.
Mobile phones are magical things and our whole lives are in them but we have lost side things such as printed photographs, postcards and letters. Our text messages, gifs and emails won't be found in suitcases and keepsake boxes by our grandchildren in years to come, they will all probably be in the block chain for all to see and maybe that is better
I remember the days when there was no internet, home computers or cell phones, we had to go outside to play, use our imaginations, neighbors helped keep an eye on the neighborhood kids, we had chores like mowing the lawn, tending to the garden. Them were the good ole days.
Back then, I would be on the phone all the time. Checking Facebook, Instagram, my email, and various other social media platforms. There was a point that I should just take it easy and take a break. I haven't been on facebook and instagram for months now.
I find it strange that you get dopamine by checking your phone, the same chemical that you also get from hugging someone or kissing them. Nevertheless great post @sirwinchester.