Why Cannot I Stop Phubbing? Boredom Proneness and Phubbing: A Multiple Mediation Model

Abstract

Background With the popularity of smartphone and their increasingly rich functions, people’s attachment to their phones is increasing. While people enjoy the convenience that smartphone bring (eg, accessing information and socializing), it also leads to problematic smartphone use (eg, phubbing). Previous research has shown that boredom proneness can trigger phubbing. However, the underlying psychological mechanisms are not yet clear. Methods To address this research gap, we surveyed 556 Chinese college students ( M age = 18.89 years, SD = 1.18) during the COVID-19 pandemic and all participants completed a self-report questionnaire. Drawing the Interaction of Person-Affect-Cognition-Execution model (I-PACE) for addictive behaviors, this study developed and examined a multiple mediation model incorporating boredom proneness, loneliness, fear of missing out (FoMO), and phubbing. Results (1) Boredom proneness could positively predict phubbing; (2) loneliness and FoMO mediated the relationship between boredom proneness and phubbing, respectively; and (3) loneliness and FoMO sequentially mediated the relationship between boredom proneness and phubbing. Conclusion These findings are not only valuable for understanding the underlying mechanisms linking boredom proneness and phubbing, but also suggest that three types of interventions could be effectively used to decrease the risk of phubbing among college students, namely, reducing boredom proneness, relieving loneliness, and decreasing FoMO.

The Bidirectional Relationships between Fear of Missing Out, Problematic Social Media Use and Adolescents' Well-Being: A Random Intercept Cross-Lagged Panel Model

“…consequently resulting in a higher level of life satisfaction. Similarly, prior research has indicated that adolescents experiencing greater loneliness, increased boredom, diminished sense of belongingness, along with heightened exposure to bullying, are more prone to developing FoMO (Alabri, 2022;Gao et al, 2023;Marengo et al, 2021). Therefore, increased FoMO could serve as a viable means for them to learn more about their peers and sustain social connections (albeit through negative channels), helping them to better fit into social groups whenever opportunities arise.…”

The Relationship FoMO (Fear of Missing Out) and Nomophobia with Phubbing Behavior among Adolescent Instagram Users

“…Adolescents become apathetic to the surrounding conditions and even feel that they do not need other people in real terms. Besides that, another negative impacts of phubbing on social interactions are poor interpersonal relationships, social ethics issues, and pasif during person conversations (Gao et al, 2023). The inability of adolescents to control themselves properly is associated with the occurrence of this phenomenon (Savitri & Suprihatin, 2021).…”

Can Remote Work Be Adopted When Phubbing and Cyber Loafing Behavior Are on the Rise?

“…Phubbing, a consequence of smartphone use, poses significant threats to individuals and organizations (Bracht et al, 2024). It detracts from an individual's ability to focus on work or social interactions (Buckle, 2016), despite the increasing reliance on smartphones for both professional and personal purposes (Gao et al, 2023: Turkle, 2012. Phubbing is perceived as rude and disruptive in social settings (Al-Saggaf & O'Donnell, 2019), with scholars exploring its associations with depressive symptoms, self-esteem, and social support (Wang et al, 2020), as well as demotivation and personality traits (Chi et al, 2022: Wu & Yang, 2021.…”