Factors Influencing the Smartphone Usage Behavior of Pedestrians: Observational Study on “Spanish Smombies” (Preprint)

Abstract

BACKGROUND Smartphone addiction has become a reality accepted by all. Some previous studies show that the use of the smartphone on public roads while walking is very common among the young population. The term “smombie” or smartphone zombie has been coined for this behavior. Such behavior causes a reduction in the attention given to other pedestrians and drivers and may result in accidents or run overs. But there is no precise data about how many people use the phone while they are walking on the street. Smartphone usage habits are evolving rapidly and more in-depth information is required, particularly about how users interact with their devices while walking: traditional phone conversations (phone close to ear), voice chats (phone in front of the head), waiting for notifications (phone in hand), text chats (user touching the screen), etc. This in-depth information may be useful for carrying out specific preventive actions in both the educative field (raising awareness about risks) and in the infrastructure field (redesigning the cities to increase safety). OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to gather information about pedestrian’s smartphone usage. METHODS An observational study of pedestrians in the street was carried out in Elche, a medium-sized Spanish city of 230.000 inhabitants. The following data was gathered: gender, age group, location and type of smartphone interaction. A specific smartphone app was developed in order to acquire data with high reliability. Statistical significance of each variable was evaluated through Chi-squared tests; and Cramér’s V statistic was used to measure effect sizes. Observer agreement was checked by a Cohen’s kappa analysis. RESULTS The behavior of 3301 pedestrians was analyzed (53.62% female). As expected, the effect of the main variables studied was statistically significant, although with a small effect size: gender (P<.001, V=.12), age (P<.001, V=.18) and city area (P<.001, V=.16). The phone in hand or “holding” behavior was particularly dependent on gender, both for all age groups (P<.001, V=.09) and, to a greater extent, for young people (P<.001, V=.16). Over 39% of young women observed belonged to “holding” or “smombie” behaviors, the highest percentage among all age and gender groups. CONCLUSIONS An in-depth analysis of smartphone usage while walking revealed that certain population groups (particularly, young women) have a high risk of suffering accidents due to smartphone usage. Interventions, aimed at reducing the risk of falls, collisions and run overs, should be focused in these groups. CLINICALTRIAL The study was registered and validated by the ethics committee of the Miguel Hernández University with research code: COIR:AUT.DISP.CFP.01.19.