The Outbreak of the Digital Age: How Does "Nomophobia" Affect Our Lives?

Today, excessive use of mobile phones can cause emotional and behavioral disorders in individuals. The term nomophobia, expressed as “fear of being without a phone” was first used by King et al. in 2010 and was defined as a disorder seen in the 21st century. While nomophobia was first used as a state of anxiety seen in individuals staying away from mobile phones and computers, in 2014 King et al. updated this definition and it has become to cover only behavioral disorders caused by mobile phone use. In this respect, nomophobia can be compared to the separation anxiety a baby feels when separated from its mother.


Young people are the group in which nomophobia is seen the most. Individuals think that the people around them have quality experiences and that they are deprived of these experiences. As a result, the desire to follow people increases and they start to use social media more. In adolescents, there is an increase in distraction and anxiety in the classroom due to excessive phone use. In the long run, it can cause personality disorders. There are many reasons for nomophobia. Having the habit of getting excessive approval, low self-perception, excitement seeking, depression, anxiety, stress, and fear of missing out on developments can lead to nomophobic behaviors.


It is known that personality traits and nomophobia are related. Nomophobic features are more common in individuals with anxious attachment or avoidant attachment type. Individuals with anxious attachment characteristics may prefer to communicate via mobile phones, as they worry a lot in face-to-face conversation and think a lot about the sentences they want to express. Individuals who show avoidant attachment feature may become dependent on mobile phones as they maintain a comfortable distance between them and people. As a result of these behaviors, the individual may show nomophobic behaviors. It was stated that people who sacrifice their own goals and objectives for the sake of other individuals have more nomophobic behaviors.


How Do We Recognize If We Have Nomophobia?

A psychological support should be obtained as soon as possible in case of following evidances are frequently met , such as having more than one mobile, spending too much time on the mobile at short intervals, checking it frequently, carrying a charger constantly, being afraid to enter environments where the use of the phone is prohibited, sleeping with the phone and less preference for face-to-face communication; as well as feeling nervous of losing the phone, not having it nearby, not being able to connect to the internet and running out of battery charge. Another symptom that makes a diagnosis is that individuals express that they have heard imaginary ringtones, vibrations or fake phone sounds. In addition to dizziness, symptoms such as stomach cramps, shortness of breath and tachycardia are observed in nomophobic individuals. Nomophobia is treated with individual and group therapies in addition to drug therapy.