Abstract
Background: Nowadays, media addictions are especially of high relevance to psychotherapeutic practice. More recently, this particularly includes excessive smartphone usage. Even though a growing number of scientific literature and also mainstream media highlight problematic smartphone use as a serious health problem, there is only little research on this issue. Objective: The aim of this study was to examine this phenomenon with a focus on attachment-specific differences between students with and without problematic smartphone use. Method: A survey was carried out on all enrolled students of the Sigmund Freud University Vienna. The Smartphone Addiction Scale (SPAS) was used to differentiate between students with and without problematic smartphone use. The attachment style was assessed using the Bielefeld Partnership Expectations Questionnaire (BFPE). Results: Of the total sample, 75 of the students (15.1%) showed a problematic smartphone use. A positive correlation between excessive smartphone usage and an insecure attachment style was found. Discussion: Therapy for problematic smartphone use should be carried out in light of patient’s attachment style. Further research into other factors of mental stress and personality is needed to better understand problematic smartphone use.
Highlights
We spend more time with our smartphone than with any other human
Smartphone addiction has no independent diagnosis in the current classification systems for mental disorders, International Classification of Diseases, 10th revision (ICD-10) [2], and Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th Edition (DSM-5) [3]; and, it is a controversial term in this field of research [4]
Expected attachment style and substance dependence has been widely demonstrated [29, 34], the aim of the present study was to investigate how people differ in their attachment style in regard to their tendency to problematically use smartphone
Summary
We spend more time with our smartphone than with any other human. Everyone has their mobile device either directly on the body or at least in close vicinity around-the-clock. Smartphone addiction has no independent diagnosis in the current classification systems for mental disorders, International Classification of Diseases, 10th revision (ICD-10) [2], and Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th Edition (DSM-5) [3]; and, it is a controversial term in this field of research [4]. Media addictions are especially of high relevance to psychotherapeutic practice. Even though a growing number of scientific literature and mainstream media highlight problematic smartphone use as a serious health problem, there is only little research on this issue
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