Prioritizing technology over the moment, smartphones can challenge relationships

Smartphones have made multi-tasking easier, more understandable, and at times compulsive. But in social settings, these devices can lead to a form of contemporary rudeness called phone snubbing, or phubbing, the act of ignoring one’s companions to pay attention to a phone.

While it may be commonplace, snubbing one’s friends (Fphubbing) can have serious repercussions on relationships, and there are a variety of factors that may drive individuals to ignore their friends in favor of an electronic screen, according to a new University of Georgia study.

The study reveals positive associations between depression and social anxiety on increasing Fphubbing: depressed people are likely to phub their friends more frequently, and socially anxious people, who might prefer online social interactions to face-to-face communication, might also exhibit more phubbing behavior. Personality traits such as neuroticism also influence phubbing behavior.

“And of course, some people who have high social anxiety or depression are more likely to be addicted to their smartphone,” said Juhyung Sun, lead author on the paper who completed her master’s degree in communication studies at UGA.

The very ordinariness of phubbing suggests some fundamental insights about how technology interrupts social interactions – and how quickly they are accepted, if not embraced.

Continue reading...

Image: Mobile Lovers (2014), by Banksy.