Digital well-being in an age of mobile connectivity: An introduction to the Special Issue

Abeele, Mariek Vanden; Nguyen, Minh Hao

doi:10.1177/20501579221080899

Cited by 36 publications

(17 citation statements)

References 63 publications

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“…› Allowing physical closeness, such as smelling, feeling, touching, and seeing each other. › Not having to depend on technology, which may sound trivial, but in a society increasingly dominated by technology, moments without technology might become more relevant and actively sought by people (Nguyen, 2021;Vanden Abeele & Nguyen, 2022).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The value of face-to-face communication in the digital world: What people miss about in-person interactions when those are limited

Gruber

Hargittai

Nguyen

2022

SComS

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Face-to-face communication is important for building and maintaining relationships. The COVID-19 pandemic led to severe limitations in people’s face-to-face interactions, resulting in most people relying more heavily on digital communication for social connection. Existing research has contributed to the understanding of how face-to-face communication is used alongside digital communication. However, we know little about what elements of face-to-face interactions people miss especially when in-person meetings are heavily reduced, and how this is related to their use of digital communication for social connection. In this study, we draw upon survey data that we collected in spring 2020 from a national sample of U. S. adults to answer these questions. We find that most people missed elements of face-to-face interactions and particularly valued spontaneous interactions, physical closeness, and independence from technology about in-person interactions. More frequent and increasing use of popular digital modes such as voice calls, video calls, text messages, and social media were all positively related to missing face-to-face communication. Our results contribute to the understanding of the role and value of in-person interactions in a digital world.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The value of face-to-face communication in the digital world: What people miss about in-person interactions when those are limited

Gruber

Hargittai

Nguyen

2022

SComS

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“…In sum, as demonstrated in a recent special issue (Vanden Abeele & Nguyen, 2022), MMC represents a key forum for synthesizing and debating the narratives on the implications of mobile media for well-being. MMC thus operates as a neighborhood pub for researchers who study mobile media – even while coming from very different methodological and intellectual traditions.…”

Section: Theme #3: Psychological Well-being and Alarmismmentioning

confidence: 96%

Psychological perspectives on mobile media: A flyover review

Bayer

Reinecke

Abeele

2022

Mobile Media & Communication

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Psychology-infused research has always been a central section within the literature on mobile media and communication, highlighting the diverse emotional, cognitive, social, and personality processes that can interact with mobile behavior. While past work on the psychology of media and technology has been rooted more in the discipline of Communication than Psychology, more social scientists across disciplines are conducting mobile research with each year going forward. The result is a massive, and arguably scattered, body of knowledge on the psychological predictors, processes, effects, and implications of mobile media use.Despite the breadth of the burgeoning literature, there have been increasing attempts to synthesize this wide-ranging work (

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“…The meaning of digital detox is still being refined (see Radtke et al, 2022; Vanden Abeele & Nguyen, 2022). Given the purpose and use of the term detox, digital detox holds an underlying assumption that digital technology use is unhealthy or even toxic.…”

Section: Digital Technology Use In Australiamentioning

confidence: 99%

Better than scrolling: Digital detox in the search for the ideal self.

Vialle,

Machin,

Abel

2024

Psychology of Popular Media

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Many popular press articles promote the benefits of undergoing a digital detox for people who believe screen-based digital media is detrimental to their well-being. This qualitative study aimed to better understand the experiences of people who undertake digital detoxes. Semistructured interviews were conducted with five women and two men. Reflexive thematic analysis of the data generated two themes: (a) resisting temptation: the digital diet and (b) in search of the perfect self: actual versus ideal. The motivations to undertake a digital detox focus on a discrepancy between an individual’s ideal self and how they perceive themselves when using digital technology. Here, digital technology, especially smartphones and social media, is seen as a threat to values, self-regulation, and self-esteem. While the undertaking a digital detox is viewed as a way of reducing self-discrepancy, many people consider their digital technologies vital tools to manage their work and social lives. Individuals experiencing self-discrepancy may benefit from greater exposure to research articulating the benefits of digital technology to shift their perception of abstinence being ideal when some consumption is almost inevitable in modern life.

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Digital well-being in an age of mobile connectivity: An introduction to the Special Issue

Cited by 36 publications

References 63 publications

The value of face-to-face communication in the digital world: What people miss about in-person interactions when those are limited

The value of face-to-face communication in the digital world: What people miss about in-person interactions when those are limited

Psychological perspectives on mobile media: A flyover review

Better than scrolling: Digital detox in the search for the ideal self.

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