An investigation into problematic smartphone use: The role of narcissism, anxiety, and personality factors

Abstract

Background and aimsOver the last decade, worldwide smartphone usage has greatly increased. Alongside this growth, research on the influence of smartphones on human behavior has also increased. However, a growing number of studies have shown that excessive use of smartphones can lead to detrimental consequences in a minority of individuals. This study examines the psychological aspects of smartphone use particularly in relation to problematic use, narcissism, anxiety, and personality factors.MethodsA sample of 640 smartphone users ranging from 13 to 69 years of age (mean = 24.89 years, SD = 8.54) provided complete responses to an online survey including modified DSM-5 criteria of Internet Gaming Disorder to assess problematic smartphone use, the Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, the Narcissistic Personality Inventory, and the Ten-Item Personality Inventory.ResultsThe results demonstrated significant relationships between problematic smartphone use and anxiety, conscientiousness, openness, emotional stability, the amount of time spent on smartphones, and age. The results also demonstrated that conscientiousness, emotional stability, and age were independent predictors of problematic smartphone use.ConclusionThe findings demonstrate that problematic smartphone use is associated with various personality factors and contributes to further understanding the psychology of smartphone behavior and associations with excessive use of smartphones.

Problematic smartphone usage and subjective and psychological well-being

“…Hughes & Burke, 2018;Lapierre & Lewis, 2016;Li et al, 2015;Rotondi et al, 2017;Toda, Ezoe, Mure, & Takeshita, 2016), and mood or anxiety disorders (e.g. Alhassan et al, 2018;Arpaci, Baloğlu, Özteke Kozan, & Kesici, 2017;Elhai, Levine, Dvorak, & Hall, 2016, 2017Gao, Xiang, Zhang, Zhang, & Mei, 2017;Hussain, Griffiths, & Sheffield, 2017;Kim & Koh, 2018;Kim, Joo, Han, Kim, & Choi, 2018;Kim, Jang, Lee, Lee, & Kim, 2018). While some have interpreted this to indicate that smartphones are causing lower levels of well-being, it is important to consider that well-being and related dispositional factors may also cause perceived and actual problematic smartphone usage.…”

An Exploration of Problematic Smartphone Use among Chinese University Students: Associations with Academic Anxiety, Academic Procrastination, Self-Regulation and Subjective Wellbeing

“…Self-regulation . Life satisfaction 2015a;Carbonell et al 2012;Hussain et al 2017;Lopez-Fernandez et al 2017). Several symptoms of problematic smartphone use have been identified including excessive reassurance behaviours (e.g.…”

“…Although mobile phones, especially smartphones, offer benefits in terms of communication and access to information, there is growing evidence that they can have negative effects and that their use can become problematic among a small minority of individuals (e.g. Bianchi and Phillips 2005;Billieux et al 2015a;Carbonell et al 2012;Hussain et al 2017;Lopez-Fernandez et al 2017). Several symptoms of problematic smartphone use have been identified including excessive reassurance behaviours (e.g.…”

Do Chinese and British University Students Use Smartphones Differently? A Cross-cultural Mixed Methods Study

“…However, as discussed by Billieux (2012), in a minority of cases, problematic mobile phone use can also have harmful consequences. Studies across a range of countries have identified that problematic, excessive or addictive mobile phone (or smartphone) use can have negative psychological consequences such as anxiety and/or low psychological wellbeing (Bianchi and Phillips 2005;Billieux et al 2015a;Ha et al 2008;Hussain et al 2017;Lepp et al 2014;Leung 2008). It appears that the more negative side of smartphone use could be a global problem and more studies are needed to understand when, where, and how access to smartphones may be harmful.…”