At Snubbing friends to look phone linked with mental health issues, finds study
Research reveals depressed and socially anxious people are likely to snub their friends more frequently
According to a new study by the University of Georgia, there are a variety of factors that may drive individuals to ignore their friends in favour of an electronic screen. The study highlighted how snubbing friends to look at a phone screen is linked to various mental health issues including depression and anxiety. The findings were published in the journal Behaviour and Information Technology.
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.
The study revealed positive associations between depression and social anxiety on increasing phubbing. Personality traits such as neuroticism also influence such behaviour.
Juhyung Sun, lead author on the paper, says, “I observed that so many people use their phones while they are sitting with their friends at the cafe, any dining time, regardless of the relationship type.” She first considered some negative reasons behind phubbing, such as smartphone addiction and the habit of constantly reading notifications that pop up on the screen. “People are sensitive to their notifications. With each buzz or sound, we consciously or unconsciously look at our phones,” she explains.
Jennifer Samp, professor in the UGA Franklin College of Arts and Sciences department communication studies and Sun’s advisor on the project, believes the act of phubbing may have greater implications once the public returns to faceto-face interactions after the pandemic. “People relied heavily on phones and other tech to stay connected during the pandemic,” Samp says.