Smartphone-mediated communication vs. face-to-face interaction: Two routes to social support and problematic use of smartphone

Abstract

The present study examines two possible routes lonely people can take to alleviate their loneliness: One route via escape motivation and smartphone-mediated communication vs. another route via relationship motivation and face-to-face interaction. Two hypothesized path models were tested with a total of 930 U.S. American participants who were nationally recruited through a professional survey company. Those with a high level of loneliness tend to rely more on smartphone-mediated communication, while being reluctant to engage in face-to-face interaction. Such combination of the two increases the possibility of developing problematic use of smartphone but decreases perceived social support from their social networks. Furthermore, a multi-group analysis suggested that young adults of age 31–40 would develop problematic use of smartphone more than adolescents of age 13–18.