Adolescents problematic mobile phone use, Fear of Missing Out and family communication

Abstract

This research analyzes the problematic use of mobile phone, the phenomenon of fear of missing Out (FoMO) and the communication between parents and children in students who attend secondary education in public and private centers of the regions of Canary Islands, Balearic Islands and Valencia. The research involved 569 students aged between 12 and 19 years. The instruments used were the «Mobil phone related experiences questionnaire», the Spanish adaptation of the «Fear of missing out questionnaire» and the communication dimension with parents of the «Parents and peers attachment inventory». The results show that: 1) An increased problematic use of the mobile phone is associated with a higher level of FoMO; 2) The students who frequently use the mobile phone and communicate more with their friends have a higher average score in the «Mobile phone related experiences questionnaire» and in the «Fear of missing out questionnaire»; 3) The students that use the mobile phone for less time has a greater communication with fathers and mothers. We discuss the relevance of the study of FoMO and parents-children communication as factors that affect the problematic use of mobile phone in young people. Centers’ guidance teams, families and teachers have to create a common learning space to promote the responsible use of mobile phone. Este estudio analiza el uso problemático del móvil, el fenómeno de «Fear of missing out» (FoMO: temor de perderse experiencias o fobia a sentirse excluidos) y la comunicación entre padres e hijos/as en el alumnado que cursa educación secundaria en centros públicos y concertados de las Comunidades Autónomas de Canarias, Baleares y Valencia. En la investigación participaron 569 alumnos y alumnas con edades comprendidas entre 12 y 19 años. Los instrumentos utilizados fueron el Cuestionario de experiencias relacionadas con el móvil (CERM), la adaptación española del Cuestionario «Fear of Missing Out» (FoMO-E) y la dimensión de comunicación con padres y madres del «Inventario de apego con padres y pares». Los resultados muestran que: 1) A mayor uso problemático del móvil mayor nivel de FoMO; 2) El alumnado que usa con frecuencia el móvil y se comunica más con sus amigos tiene una puntuación media más alta en el «Cuestionario de experiencias relacionadas con el móvil» y en el «Cuestionario FoMO-E»; 3) El alumnado que usa menos horas el móvil tiene una mayor comunicación parento-filial. En el artículo se discute la relevancia del estudio del FoMO y de la comunicación parento-filial como factores que inciden en el uso problemático del móvil en los jóvenes. Las familias, el profesorado y los equipos de orientación en los centros han de crear un espacio de aprendizaje común para fomentar el uso responsable del móvil.

Profiles of Mobile Phone Problem Use in Bullying and Cyberbullying Among Adolescents

“…Our study is limited due to it being cross-sectional and the instruments used may have been associated with the effect of social desirability. Therefore, longitudinal studies are required (Livingstone and Smith, 2014) possibly up to the university level, including, among others, gathering information on emotional management (Amendola et al, 2019), focusing on other behavioral addictions possibly associated with previous psychological problems (Echeburúa and de Corral, 2010;Cía, 2013), and to investigate family communication (Santana-Vega et al, 2019) that can provide more information to the clusters. Finally, research for the delimitation of behavioral addictions, especially in DSM-5, remains necessary to advance proper diagnosis and treatment (Grant et al, 2010;Cía, 2013).…”

Factors Contributing to Mobile Phone Dependence Amongst Young People—Educational Implications

“…The quantitative scope of these changes has been documented by Santana, Gómez and Feliciano [7] who reported that 92.4% of the population, aged between 10 and 15 years, had incorporated such changes into their daily life for communicative and academic purposes [4]. Within this phenomenon, an availability factor has been outlined, with the number of homes in Spain with access to the Internet in 2019 being higher than 91% (International Telecommunication Union).…”

“…Nowadays, Internet access it fundamentally provided through mobile devices. Amongst these, telephones are the most commonly used [7]. Mobile phone use has expanded for a number of purposes, principally, those that are professional and communicative in nature [8][9][10].…”

Factors Contributing to Mobile Phone Dependence amongst Young People: Educational Implications

“…The quantitative scope of these changes has been documented by Santana, Gómez and Feliciano [7] who reported that 92.4% of the population, aged between 10 and 15 years, had incorporated such changes into their daily life for communicative and academic purposes [4]. Within this phenomenon, an availability factor has been outlined, with the number of homes in Spain with access to the internet being higher than 80%.…”