According to many researchers our well-being, happiness and belonging is dependent on the positive social engagement with others. Although smartphones allow us to connect and reach out to family and friends at any time of the day, regardless of where we or they are in the world, is this constant online connectedness with others and the plethora of cyber information resulting in a disconnect from those sitting besides us? Let’s all admit to it, when a conversation we’re having with a friend, neighbour or family member becomes dull or the monthly family meal get together has resulted in a conversation about the state of number 15’s garden bushes becoming so out of control they are starting to poke people in they eye as they walk past…our smartphone then becomes our salvation, providing us with a short boost of interesting stimuli (especially a funny video of a dog pushing the family cat off the sofa!)
Psychologists in Vancouver state that having this continuous availability of digital information at our disposal is undermining the quality of our real-time relationships. They cleverly showed this by asking 300 people to participate in a study “investigating people’s experience dining out with friends”. Participants dined in groups of 3-5 consisting of family members and friends in a cafe. All participants were randomly assigned to two groups: “phone” or “phoneless”. Those in the phone group were asked to keep their phone on the table whilst they ate as they would be asked questions regarding their meal immediately afterwards (sneaky!). Those in the phoneless group dined the entire meal without any access to their smartphone and were handed paper and pen to jot down their responses about their meal afterwards (double sneaky!).
After they had eaten their meal, both groups were given a questionnaire asking how much they felt socially connected, were they bored at all, did they enjoy their time together and was it interesting, what kind of mood were they in: sad, angry or happy? and the “phone” group had to estimate how much they had used their phone throughout the meal from (1) not at all to (7) constantly.
Those in the “phone” group said they enjoyed the meal less, had lower interest in the meal and experienced higher distraction than those in the “phoneless” group. Now let’s take a closer look at the implication of this for a second. Let’s say you are out having a nice romantic meal with your other half and they whip out their smartphone for a few minutes whilst you both patiently await the arrival of your sticky BBQ chicken wings (ah true romance!) – does this mean that they are using their phone because they are bored at that moment in time or is their visually stimulating smartphone making our fascinating selves seem dull in comparison?
Before we start eyeballing our loved ones for using their smartphone in our presence, let’s get critical for a moment: the article did not state the purpose of smartphone use by those in the “phone” group. For example, if I were to check my work emails during dinner only to find Sally from HR needs me to complete a safety training program in two days because her records show I haven’t done it, I think that would almost certainly burst my happiness bubble too! I think the researchers overlooked an important aspect as to which type (if any) of smartphone use is making us more distracted.
Either way, the results certainly indicate that smartphone use during social interactions leads to increased distraction which is making us feel less engaged with those around us. So what can we do to minimise this impact?
- Arrange “Device-Free Time” with loved ones during date night, family meals, get-together’s etc to ensure quality time is uninterrupted (anyone caught smuggling in their smartphones will be made to walk the plank!!!…ahem…or do the laundry for the next few days)
- Self-enforce office hours away from work, mute all email/work related notifications after a certain time of day/night. They can wait until morning!
- For more useful tips check out: https://www.artofmanliness.com/articles/5-concrete-ways-to-develop-a-healthier-relationship-with-your-phone-no-blocking-or-deleting-apps-required/
Dwyer, R. J., Kushlev, K., & Dunn, E. W. (2018). Smartphone use undermines enjoyment of face-to-face social interactions doi:10.1016/j.jesp.2017.10.007
Kostadin Kushlev, A., Jason Proulx, A., & Elizabeth W. Dunn, A. (2016). ‘Silence your phones’ : Smartphone notifications increase inattention and hyperactivity symptoms. New York, NY, USA: ACM. doi:10.1145/2858036.2858359
Psychology meets Cyberspace 