scholarly journals Studies on the Relationship between Social Anxiety and Excessive Smartphone Use and on the Effects of Abstinence and Sensation Seeking on Excessive Smartphone Use

Author(s):  
Liat Turgeman ◽  
Inbar Hefner ◽  
Maayan Bazon ◽  
Or Yehoshua ◽  
Aviv Weinstein

Problematic smartphone use is the excessive use of the smartphone with negative impacts on the quality of life of the user. We investigated the association between social anxiety and excessive smartphone use. The sample consisted of 140 participants, 73 male and 67 female university students with a mean age of 26 years and 4 months (SD = 3.38), who filled in the Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale and the Smartphone Addiction Scale (SAS). Results showed a positive association between social anxiety and excessive smartphone use. Social anxiety explained 31.5% of the variance of ratings on the SAS. A second study investigated the interaction between abstinence and sensation seeking and excessive smartphone use. The sample consisted of 60 participants, 44 female and 16 male university students. The sample was divided into two experimental conditions: 30 participants were abstinent for 1.5 h from the smartphone and 30 participants were non-abstinent. Results showed that excessive smartphone use increased in the group that abstained compared to those who did not. Secondly, participants who had high baseline sensation-seeking ratings had higher scores of excessive smartphone use after abstinence compared with those with low ratings of sensation seeking. These studies indicate the contribution of social anxiety to problematic smartphone use and how it can be exacerbated by the combination of abstinence and high sensation seeking.

Author(s):  
Louis Leung ◽  
Jingwen Liang

This study investigates the effects of psychological traits (i.e., procrastination, leisure boredom, and impulsivity) and addiction symptoms on problematic smartphone use. Data were collected from a multistage random sample of 649 university students. The results showed that procrastination, impulsivity [including sensation seeking and (lack of) perseverance], symptoms of addiction (e.g., inability to control craving, withdrawal, and complaints), and frequent usage of smartphone features for instrumental, relational, expressive, and informational purposes were significant predictors of problematic smartphone use.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 157-164
Author(s):  
Salman Zarei ◽  

Background: Despite several benefits, research has found that problematic smartphone use is positively associated with behavioral problems. However, the internal mechanisms underlying this relationship need further investigation. So, the current study aimed to investigate the mediating role of sleep disturbance in the relationship between problematic smartphone use and aggression. Methods: The research design was descriptive-correlational. Also, the study population included the male university students of the Islamic Azad University of South Tehran Branch in the academic year of 2019-2020. Using the convenience sampling method, a total number of 213 participants from two faculties (Faculty of Human Sciences and Faculty of Law and Political Sciences) were selected and tested by Buss-Perry Aggression Questionnaire, Smartphone Addiction Scale-Short Version, and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index. Then, the Pearson correlation and path analysis were conducted to analyze the data. Results: The results revealed the significant and direct effects of problematic smartphone use on aggression (β=0.12, P<0.05), sleep quality on aggression (β=0.37, P<0.001), and problematic smartphone use on sleep disturbance (β=0.42, P<0.001). Also, sleep quality significantly mediated in the relationship between problematic smartphone use and aggression (β=0.15, P<0.01). Conclusion: According to the present findings, problematic smartphone use and sleep disturbance are two important factors affecting aggressive behavior among university students. These findings highlight the critical role of early intervention for aggression with a focus on those with problematic smartphone use and more specifically those with sleep disturbance.


2019 ◽  
pp. 321-341 ◽  
Author(s):  
Louis Leung ◽  
Jingwen Liang

This study investigates the effects of psychological traits (i.e., procrastination, leisure boredom, and impulsivity) and addiction symptoms on problematic smartphone use. Data were collected from a multistage random sample of 649 university students. The results showed that procrastination, impulsivity [including sensation seeking and (lack of) perseverance], symptoms of addiction (e.g., inability to control craving, withdrawal, and complaints), and frequent usage of smartphone features for instrumental, relational, expressive, and informational purposes were significant predictors of problematic smartphone use.


Author(s):  
Anna Maria Annoni ◽  
Serena Petrocchi ◽  
Anne-Linda Camerini ◽  
Laura Marciano

Background: The pervasiveness of smartphones has raised concerns about an increase in the prevalence of problematic smartphone use (PSU), which depends on a set of psychological and behavioral risk factors. Previous research has yielded mixed results on factors predicting PSU, including social anxiety and trust. In particular, the role of trust remained largely unexplored. In the present study, we aimed to investigate the relationship between social anxiety and PSU, via the mediating role of time spent on the phone, and to explore the moderating role of dispositional trust toward others, by using a moderated mediation model with PSU as the outcome. Methods: A total of 240 young adults (Mage = 23.33, SD = 3.90, 50% male) answered an online questionnaire, which included the 12-item Social Anxiety Scale, a question on the daily duration of smartphone use, a single-item measure of dispositional trust, and the 10-item Smartphone Addiction Scale Short Version. Gender and occupational status were included as covariates. Results: Social anxiety was significantly and positively related to PSU; however, smartphone use did not mediate this relationship. Although the relationship between smartphone use and PSU was significant and positive, the link between social anxiety and smartphone use was not. Dispositional trust moderated and strengthened the direct relationships between social anxiety and PSU as well as smartphone use and PSU. Conclusions. Heavy smartphone users as well as socially anxious individuals, with the tendency of trusting others, are more at risk of PSU, which can be explained by their preference and search for online connections.


Author(s):  
Louis Leung ◽  
Jingwen Liang

This study investigates the effects of psychological traits (i.e., procrastination, leisure boredom, and impulsivity) and addiction symptoms on problematic smartphone use. Data were collected from a multistage random sample of 649 university students. The results showed that procrastination, impulsivity [including sensation seeking and (lack of) perseverance], symptoms of addiction (e.g., inability to control craving, withdrawal, and complaints), and frequent usage of smartphone features for instrumental, relational, expressive, and informational purposes were significant predictors of problematic smartphone use.


Author(s):  
Louis Leung ◽  
Jingwen Liang

This study investigates the effects of psychological traits (i.e., procrastination, leisure boredom, and impulsivity) and addiction symptoms on problematic smartphone use. Data were collected from a multistage random sample of 649 university students. The results showed that procrastination, impulsivity [including sensation seeking and (lack of) perseverance], symptoms of addiction (e.g., inability to control craving, withdrawal, and complaints), and frequent usage of smartphone features for instrumental, relational, expressive, and informational purposes were significant predictors of problematic smartphone use.


2018 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 315-332 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jon D. Elhai ◽  
Mojisola Tiamiyu ◽  
Justin Weeks

Purpose Previous research has found support for depression and anxiety severity in association with both increased and problematic smartphone use. However, little research has explored transdiagnostic psychopathology constructs as mediators that may account for these relationships. The purpose of this paper is to test rumination as a possible transdiagnostic (cross-sectional) mediator in these relationships. Design/methodology/approach The authors recruited 296 college students to complete relevant web survey measures, including the patient health questionnaire-9 (for depression severity), social interaction anxiety scale (for social anxiety severity), ruminative thought styles questionnaire, smartphone addiction scale-short version (to measure levels of problematic smartphone use), and a measure of smartphone use frequency. Findings The authors found support for a structural model whereby the severity of depression and social anxiety accounted for variance in rumination, which, in turn, correlated with problematic smartphone use levels. Rumination accounted for relations between both depression and social anxiety severity with levels of problematic use. Originality/value The authors discuss the role of rumination as a possible mechanism between anxiety- and depression-related psychopathology levels with problematic smartphone use severity. This study is unique in exploring rumination in the context of problematic smartphone use.


2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Joanne Zeidan ◽  
Souheil Hallit ◽  
Marwan Akel ◽  
Ismail Louragli ◽  
Sahar Obeid

Abstract Background Adults all over the world face serious issues from problematic smartphone use (PSU). It influences them negatively on a cognitive, behavioral, and emotional level, as well as on their tendencies and well-being. In Lebanon, the prevalence of PSU was shown to be 20.2% within the adult population, specifically with young adults (18–34 years old). This study investigates the validity and reliability of the Smartphone Addiction Scale (SAS) Arabic version. In addition, this study evaluates the association between PSU and affective temperaments and the mediating role of self-esteem in this association. Method A cross-sectional study was carried out between August and September 2020, using a sample of community-dwelling participants aged 18 to 29 years. The Smartphone Addiction Scale—Short Version was used to evaluate smartphone addiction among adolescents and adults. The five different temperaments of the patients were assessed by using the Affective temperament Scale (TEMPS‐A). The Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale was used to evaluate self-esteem. Results 461 participants were included in this study. All items of the SAS were extracted and yielded a one-factor solution with Eigenvalues > 1 (variance explained = 49.96%; αCronbach = 0.886). The confirmatory analysis results consolidated those obtained from the factor analysis. Higher depressive temperament (B = 0.46) was significantly associated with more smartphone addiction, whereas higher self-esteem (B =  − 0.28) was significantly associated with less smartphone addiction. Self-esteem was found to mediate the association between depressive and hyperthymic temperaments with smartphone addiction. Conclusion This study added a better understanding of the high smartphone addiction rate among adults in Lebanon. It confirms the association between affective temperaments and PSU through the mediating effect of self-esteem on Lebanese adults.


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