Measuring Problematic Mobile Phone Use: Development and Preliminary Psychometric Properties of the PUMP Scale

Abstract

This study aimed to develop and assess the psychometric properties of an English language measure of problematic mobile phone use. Participants were recruited from a university campus, health science center, and other public locations. The sample included 244 individuals (68.4% female) aged 18–75. Results supported a unidimensional factor structure for the 20-item self-report Problematic Use of Mobile Phones (PUMP) Scale. Internal consistency was excellent (α = 0.94). Strong correlations (r = .76, P < .001) were found between the PUMP Scale and an existing scale of cellular phone dependency that was validated in Asia, as well as items assessing frequency and intensity of mobile phone use. Results provide preliminary support for the use of the PUMP Scale to measure problematic use of mobile phones.

Üniversite öğrencileri için Problemli Cep Telefonu Kullanım Ölçeği’nin geliştirilmesi: Geçerlik ve güvenirlik analizleri

“…The resulting fit values ( χ 2 /SD=1.997, GFI=0.90, AGFI=0.88, CFI=0.95, TLI=0.93, RMSEA=0.052, SRMR=0.0645) showed that these four dimensions are indeed components of a construct identified as problematic mobile phone use. Reviewing the literature for instruments developed to measure problematic mobile phone use, we find single-factor scales with 27 items by Bianchi and Phillips (4) or with 20 items by Merlo et al (23). The instrument developed by Yen et al (10) to determine problematic mobile phone use in adolescents is a two-factor construct containing a total of 12 items, seven of which are determining problematic mobile phone use and five that are dealing with functional impairment.…”

“…In our data analysis, we first removed items 37 and 33, which were showing overlap. Next, 15 items with a factor loading below 0.50 (1,3,11,12,13,19,20,23,24,26,31,36,39,43,45) were eliminated from the scale. As can be seen in Table 1, the result of EFA, using principal component method and Varimax rotation, shows that the resulting scale has a 26-item 4-dimensional structure explaining 56.933% of the total variance; the item factor loadings with regard to this structure ranged between 0.61 and 0.82 in the deprivation (D) subdimension, between 0.53 and 0.74 in the adverse outcomes (AO) subdimension, between 0.51 and 0.69 in the control problem (CP) subdimension, and between 0.52 and 0.74 in the interaction avoidance (IA) subdimension.…”

“…In studies developing scales or surveys for problematic mobile phone use, we can see that some researchers use criteria for certain disorders from the DSM (10,19,22,23). When developing an instrument to measure problematic mobile phone use, first of all we may want to look for standards in studies developing instruments for internet addiction, because many of the opportunities offered by the internet can also be reached by mobile phone.…”

Instrumentos de evaluación del uso problemático del teléfono móvil/Smartphone

“…(Lin et al, 2014 Smartphone; la COS y MPAI en los criterios diagnósticos de juego patológico del DSM-IV; la PMPUQ en criterios asociados a la impulsividad según la adaptación francesa de la escala UPPS; la TMDS ,la PCPU-Q, la SPUQ y la SAS en criterios del DSM-IV y DSM-VI-TR de abuso y dependencia de sustancias; la CERM y el TDM en criterios del DSM-IV para el abuso de sustancias y juego patológico; y la MPIQ en criterios del comportamiento adictivo de Brown (1997) y criterios propios del autor. El hecho de que los criterios de elaboración de las escalas de medición del uso del teléfono móvil sean distintos y que no posean fundamentos comunes, origina que no se puede demostrar científicamente que el móvil provoque adicción, pese a que algunos estudios realizados apunten a ello e indiquen que el tema merece una especial atención (Carbonell Sánchez, 2014;Merlo et al, 2013). La OMS, por su parte, también manifestó en un encuentro producido en Tokio en el año 2014, la alerta sobre las implicaciones en salud pública de los comportamientos excesivos asociados con el uso de tecnologías de la información y comunicación, incluyendo como no podía ser de otra manera, los Smartphones (Billieux et al, 2015).…”

Development and Validation of the Mobile Addiction Scale: The Components Model Approach

“…Yen et al (2009) stated that the overuse of mobile phones can also be considered as a technology addiction; they established in a survey study, in which they based the addiction criteria included in DSM IV-TR, that 48.9% of participants had at least one of these criteria. Merlo, Stone, and Bibbey (2013) developed a scale based on DSM criteria and aimed to reveal the signs of problematic mobile phone use. In another study based upon DSM diagnostic criteria, the variables affecting mobile addiction were observed gathered under the factors of deprivation, lack of control, and tolerance (Choliz, 2012).…”