Abstract
In some people, problematic cell phone use can lead to situations in which they lose control, similar to those observed in other cases of addiction. Although different scales have been developed to assess its severity, we lack an instrument that is able to determine the desire or craving associated with it. Thus, with the objective of evaluating craving for cell phone use, in this study, we develop and present the Mobile Phone Addiction Craving Scale (MPACS). It consists of eight Likert-style items, with 10 response options, referring to possible situations in which the interviewee is asked to evaluate the degree of restlessness that he or she feels if the cell phone is unavailable at the moment. It can be self-administered or integrated in an interview when abuse or problems are suspected. With the existence of a single dimension, reflected in the exploratory factor analysis (EFA), the scale presents adequate reliability and internal consistency (α = 0.919). Simultaneously, we are able to show significantly increased correlations (r = 0.785, p = 0.000) with the Mobile Phone Problematic Use Scale (MPPUS) and state anxiety (r = 0.330, p = 0.000). We are also able to find associations with impulsivity, measured using the urgency, premeditation, perseverance, and sensation seeking scale, particularly in the dimensions of negative urgency (r = 0.303, p = 0.000) and positive urgency (r = 0.290, p = 0.000), which confirms its construct validity. The analysis of these results conveys important discriminant validity among the MPPUS user categories that are obtained using the criteria by Chow et al. (1). The MPACS demonstrates higher levels of craving in persons up to 35 years of age, reversing with age. In contrast, we do not find significant differences among the sexes. Finally, a receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis allows us to establish the scores from which we are able to determine the different levels of craving, from the absence of craving to that referred to as addiction. Based on these results, we can conclude that this scale is a reliable tool that complements ongoing studies on problematic cell phone use.
Highlights
Cell phone abuse has given rise to important issues that have been extensively described in the literature, including physical conditions such as muscle pain and eye problems [2, 3] and psychological conditions such as auditory and tactile delusions [4, 5], in addition to behavioral consequences such as anxiety, insomnia, and disturbances in personal, family, and work life [6,7,8,9]. a large portion of studies has focused attention on the student and adolescent population, we know that mobile phone addiction affects large portions of the adult population [10]
Mobile Phone Problematic Use Scale (MPPUS) We evaluated problematic cell phone use with the MPPUS [44], following our adaptation of the MPPUS to the Spanish adult population, which in turn was based on research by López-Fernández et al [45] among the adolescent population
We present the development of a mobile phone craving scale, the Mobile Phone Addiction Craving Scale (MPACS)
Summary
Cell phone abuse has given rise to important issues that have been extensively described in the literature, including physical conditions such as muscle pain and eye problems [2, 3] and psychological conditions such as auditory and tactile delusions [4, 5], in addition to behavioral consequences such as anxiety, insomnia, and disturbances in personal, family, and work life [6,7,8,9]. a large portion of studies has focused attention on the student and adolescent population, we know that mobile phone addiction affects large portions of the adult population [10]. Cell phone abuse has given rise to important issues that have been extensively described in the literature, including physical conditions such as muscle pain and eye problems [2, 3] and psychological conditions such as auditory and tactile delusions [4, 5], in addition to behavioral consequences such as anxiety, insomnia, and disturbances in personal, family, and work life [6,7,8,9]. For a while, there has been a discussion on whether cell phone abuse can be considered an addiction, similar to the current perception of gambling. Even beyond its approximation with it, the concept of behavioral addiction is increasingly expanding, by a large number of researchers and to a broad range of behaviors such as the Internet, shopping, and food These addictions arise in turn as comparisons with symptoms of drug use such as alcohol, tobacco, and other substances. This impulsive loss-of-control can lead to a search for gratification or positive reinforcement or turn into a compulsion whose objective would be to avoid distress or dysphoria, a negative reinforcement that would sustain the abnormal use [12]
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