Can you connect with me now? How the presence of mobile communication technology influences face-to-face conversation quality
Abstract
Recent advancements in communication technology have enabled billions of people to connect over great distances using mobile phones, yet little is known about how the frequent presence of these devices in social settings influences face-to-face interactions. In two experiments, we evaluated the extent to which the mere presence of mobile communication devices shape relationship quality in dyadic settings. In both, we found evidence they can have negative effects on closeness, connection, and conversation quality. These results demonstrate that the presence of mobile phones can interfere with human relationships, an effect that is most clear when individuals are discussing personally meaningful topics.
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The mere presence of a mobile phone diminishes the quality of face-to-face interaction.
“other studies show that the mere presence of a mobile phone diminishes the quality of face-to-face interaction (Przybylski and Weinstein, 2013; Misra et al., 2016).”
From Designing for Motivation, Engagement and Wellbeing in Digital Experience (2018) · cites this paper as Przybylski and Weinstein, 2013
Smartphone distractions can hamper enjoyment, personal connections, and satisfaction with others.
“This theme adds credence to previous research showing that smartphone distractions can hamper enjoyment, personal connections, and satisfaction with others.19”
From An Intervention Utilizing the Salience Principle to Reduce Pharmacy Students’ Psychological Attraction to Smartphones (2022) · cites this paper as [41]
In adults, the simple presence of a mobile phone during a conversation can lower perceived relationship quality, especially when the topic is meaningful.
“Experimental studies with adults have found that the mere presence of a mobile phone in the room during a conversation can result in lower feelings of relationship quality, particularly when the conversation is about a meaningful topic (Przybylski and Weinstein 2013)”
From Transformation of Adolescent Peer Relations in the Social Media Context: Part 1—A Theoretical Framework and Application to Dyadic Peer Relationships (2018) · cites this paper as Przybylski and Weinstein 2013
A small study found that the mere presence of a mobile phone during a dyadic social interaction prevented people from cultivating a sense of social connection, trust, and empathy when discussing a meaningful topic but not when discussing a more casual topic.
“Consistent with these predictions, a small study found that the mere presence of a mobile phone during a dyadic social interaction, prevented people from cultivating a sense of social connection, trust, and empathy when discussing a meaningful topic but not when discussing a more casual topic: plastic holiday trees [34].”
From The effects of smartphones on well-being: theoretical integration and research agenda (2020) · cites this paper as [34]
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BackgroundInfluentialA Politeness Theory Analysis of Cell-Phone Usage in the Presence of Friends
Miller‐Ott, A. E., & Kelly, L. (2017) · Communication Studies · doi:10.1080/10510974.2017.1299024 · Cited by 83 · see citing works
“Similarly, Przybylski and Weinstein’s (2013) experimental study found that the presence of a”
BackgroundDISCONNECTED, THOUGH SATISFIED: PPHUBBING BEHAVIOR AND RELATIONSHIP SATISFACTION
Çizmeci, E. (2017) · The Turkish Online Journal of Design Art and Communication · doi:10.7456/10702100/018 · Cited by 76 · see citing works
Partner phubbing and relationship satisfaction: Self-esteem and marital status as moderators
Wang, X., Zhao, F., & Lei, L. (2019) · Current Psychology · doi:10.1007/s12144-019-00275-0 · Cited by 81 · see citing works
“For instance, only mere presence of cell phones and mobile messaging behavior during an offline conversation can interfere with human relationships (Przybylski and Weinstein 2013) and lead to more negative impression formation and perceptions of lower interaction quality (Vanden Abeele et al. 2016).”
BackgroundKoessmeier, C., & Büttner, O. B. (2021) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2021.711416 · Cited by 88 · see citing works
“Moreover, previous research has investigated such effects in social situations, such as relationship formation (Przybylski and Weinstein, 2013) or romantic relationships (Roberts and David, 2016).”
BackgroundDisrupted copresence: Older adults’ views on mobile phone use during face-to-face interactions
Kadylak, T., Makki, T. W., Francis, J., Cotten, S. R., Rikard, R. V., & Sah, Y. J. (2018) · Mobile Media & Communication · doi:10.1177/2050157918758129 · Cited by 74 · see citing works
“…use (or mobile etiquette) during faceto-face (FtF) social interactions also differ by age cohort, social setting, and relational context (e.g., Ling, 2002, 2004; Miller-Ott & Kelly, 2015; Miller-Ott, Kelly, & Duran, 2012; Przybylski & Weinstein, 2013; Rainie & Zickuhr, 2015; Sawchuk & Crow, 2012).”
BackgroundInfluentialHunter, J. F., Hooker, E. D., Rohleder, N., & Pressman, S. D. (2018) · Psychosomatic Medicine · doi:10.1097/psy.0000000000000568 · Cited by 70 · see citing works
“This phenomenon may be quite subtle; simply having a smartphone present has been shown to interfere with the dynamics of a social interaction because of its symbolic representation as a communication tool(3,19).”
BackgroundPhubbing: A Technological Invasion Which Connected the World But Disconnected Humans
Nazir, T., & Pişkin, M. (2016) · International Journal of Indian Psychology · doi:10.25215/0304.195 · Cited by 70 · see citing works
“To date, only one remarkable study (Przybylski & Weinstein, 2012) addressed the influence of mobile communication technologies during social face-to-face interactions.”
BackgroundGentina, E., Tang, T., & Dancoine, P.-F. (2018) · Comput. Educ. · doi:10.1016/j.compedu.2018.07.011 · Cited by 61 · see citing works
Bröning, S., & Wartberg, L. (2022) · Computers in Human Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.chb.2021.106996 · Cited by 63 · see citing works
Hall, J. A. (2020) · Cambridge University Press eBooks · doi:10.1017/9781108629935 · Cited by 68 · see citing works
Logan, A. C., Katzman, M. A., & Balanzá‐Martínez, V. (2015) · Journal of PHYSIOLOGICAL ANTHROPOLOGY · doi:10.1186/s40101-015-0041-y · Cited by 69 · see citing works
“More relevant to erosion of humanness, emerging research in experimental and real-world settings, shows that the mere presence of mobile communication devices may erode the quality of face-to-face interactions, diminishing closeness, connection, and empathic concern [61,62].”
BackgroundGenerating Content Increases Enjoyment by Immersing Consumers and Accelerating Perceived Time
Tonietto, G., & Barasch, A. (2020) · Journal of Marketing · doi:10.1177/0022242920944388 · Cited by 70 · see citing works
To Be Connected or Not To Be Connected? Mobile Messenger Overload, Fatigue, and Mobile Shunning
Shin, J., & Shin, M. (2016) · Cyberpsychology Behavior and Social Networking · doi:10.1089/cyber.2016.0236 · Cited by 63 · see citing works
Liao, T. (2018) · Mobile Media & Communication · doi:10.1177/2050157918792438 · Cited by 62 · see citing works
Gui, M., Gerosa, T., Argentin, G., & Losi, L. (2022) · Computers & Education · doi:10.1016/j.compedu.2022.104705 · Cited by 61 · see citing works
Kelly, L., Miller‐Ott, A. E., & Duran, R. L. (2017) · Western Journal of Communication · doi:10.1080/10570314.2017.1299206 · Cited by 61 · see citing works
“Similarly, two other studies (Misra, Cheng, Genevie, & Yuan, 2014; Przybylski & Weinstein, 2013) found that the presence of a cell phone during conversation, even if neither party was using the phone, negatively affected perceptions of the quality of the conversation and partner empathetic concern,…”
ResultComprehensively Summarizing What Distracts Students from Online Learning: A Literature Review
Wang, C. (2022) · Human Behavior and Emerging Technologies · doi:10.1155/2022/1483531 · Cited by 82 · see citing works
“For example, the consistent presence of smartphones and continuously playing background music detriments the performance of building interpersonal relationships and reading comprehension, respectively [53, 136].”
BackgroundInfluentialKneidinger-Müller, B. (2019) · Computers in Human Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.chb.2019.03.037 · Cited by 53 · see citing works
Mobile devices, interaction, and distraction: a qualitative exploration of absent presence
Aagaard, J. (2016) · Ai & Society · doi:10.1007/s00146-015-0638-z · Cited by 56 · see citing works
“As Przybylski and Weinstein (2013) argue, ‘The first and most important question this research leaves open concerns the mechanism through which a mobile phone impedes relationship formation’ (p. 8).”
BackgroundThe Perceived Influence of Media and Technology on Adolescent Romantic Relationships
Vaterlaus, J. M., Tulane, S., Porter, B. D., & Beckert, T. E. (2018) · Journal of Adolescent Research · doi:10.1177/0743558417712611 · Cited by 58 · see citing works
“Young adults have reported that the use of communication technology hinders self-disclosure (Ruppel, 2014) and interferes with trust and closeness in a face-to-face conversation (Przybylski & Weinstein, 2013).”
BackgroundNie, J., Wang, P., & Lei, L. (2020) · Computers in Human Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.chb.2020.106351 · Cited by 59 · see citing works
Trub, L. R., & Barbot, B. (2016) · Computers in Human Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.chb.2016.07.050 · Cited by 58 · see citing works
Social Media Use and Offline Interpersonal Outcomes during Youth: A Systematic Literature Review
Dredge, R., & Schreurs, L. (2020) · Mass Communication & Society · doi:10.1080/15205436.2020.1810277 · Cited by 64 · see citing works
The role of family and computer-mediated communication in adolescent loneliness
Favotto, L., Michaelson, V., Pickett, W., & Davison, C. (2019) · PLOS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0214617 · Cited by 54 · see citing works
The Effects of Immersion and Real-World Distractions on Virtual Social Interactions
Oh, C. S., Herrera, F., & Bailenson, J. N. (2019) · Cyberpsychology Behavior and Social Networking · doi:10.1089/cyber.2018.0404 · Cited by 57 · see citing works
“29,30 However, few studies 31,32 have explored how engaging in different sensory information influences short-term interpersonal outcomes.”
Effects of Position and Alignment of Notifications on AR Glasses during Social Interaction
Rzayev, R., Susanne, K., Maul, M., Schark, A., Schwind, V., & Henze, N. (2020) · Nordic Conference on Human-Computer Interaction · doi:10.1145/3419249.3420095 · Cited by 53 · see citing works
“Consequently, this can lead to disconnection from co-located social interaction [43] and phubbing – preferring paying attention to the smartphone rather than the other person in the social setting [6].”
BackgroundPartner's perception of phubbing is more relevant than the behavior itself: A daily diary study
Frackowiak, M., Hilpert, P., & Russell, P. S. (2022) · Computers in Human Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.chb.2022.107323 · Cited by 62 · see citing works
Johannes, N., Veling, H., Verwijmeren, T., & Buijzen, M. (2018) · Journal of Media Psychology Theories Methods and Applications · doi:10.1027/1864-1105/a000248 · Cited by 54 · see citing works
Mobile device use when caring for children 0‐5 years: A naturalistic playground study
Mangan, E., Leavy, J. E., & Jancey, J. (2018) · Health Promotion Journal of Australia · doi:10.1002/hpja.38 · Cited by 51 · see citing works
Guo, N., Wang, M. P., Luk, T. T., Ho, S. Y., Fong, D., Chan, S. S. C., & Lam, T. H. (2019) · Journal of Behavioral Addictions · doi:10.1556/2006.8.2019.39 · Cited by 52 · see citing works
Kadylak, T. (2019) · Mobile Media & Communication · doi:10.1177/2050157919872238 · Cited by 51 · see citing works
Brown, G., Manago, A. M., & Trimble, J. E. (2016) · Emerging Adulthood · doi:10.1177/2167696816630086 · Cited by 50 · see citing works
“…research documenting that phone use distracts from face-toface conversations (Humphreys, 2005) and is associated with diminished feelings of closeness among romantic partners (McDaniel & Coyne, 2014), strangers meeting for the first time (Przybylski & Weinstein, 2013), and now close friends.”
BackgroundPearson, J. S., Robinson, S., & Jones, M. (2015) · CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems · doi:10.1145/2702123.2702247 · Cited by 50 · see citing works
“Przybylski and Weinstein [20] studied how personal mobile communication technology influences face-to-face interaction quality, demonstrating that its mere presence can interfere with social interaction, inhibiting the development of interpersonal closeness.”
Nuñez, T. R., Radtke, T., & Eimler, S. C. (2020) · Cyberpsychology Journal of Psychosocial Research on Cyberspace · doi:10.5817/cp2020-3-3 · Cited by 57 · see citing works
Crowley, J. P., Allred, R. J., Follon, J., & Volkmer, C. (2018) · Communication Studies · doi:10.1080/10510974.2018.1467941 · Cited by 48 · see citing works
“Przybylski and Weinstein (2013) conducted two experiments in which they manipulated the presence of cell phones during stranger interactions.”
BackgroundMethodResultInfluentialDurak, A., & Kaygın, H. (2019) · Education and Information Technologies · doi:10.1007/s10639-019-10079-1 · Cited by 49 · see citing works
- Authors
- Przybylski, A. K., & Weinstein, N.
- Affiliations
- University of Essex (GB)
- Corresponding author
- Przybylski, Andrew K.
- Venue
- Journal of Social and Personal Relationships
- Publisher
- SAGE Publications
- Published
- 2012-07-19
- Volume
- 30
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 237-246
- ISSN
- 0265-4075 (ISSN-L)
- 1460-3608
- OpenAlex
- W2118609397
- Cited by
- 751
- References
- 21
- Citations by year
- 2026: 57 · 2025: 104 · 2024: 66 · 2023: 70 · 2022: 54 · 2021: 70 · 2020: 91 · 2019: 56 · 2018: 65 · 2017: 40 · 2016: 32 · 2015: 26 · 2014: 16 · 2013: 4
- FWCI
- 22.61
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Journal of Social and Personal Relationships (publishedVersion)
- ORCA Online Research @Cardiff (Cardiff University) (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Attachment and Relationship Dynamics
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Impact of Technology on Adolescents
- Physical Sciences › Computer Science › Human-Computer Interaction › Digital Communication and Language
- Keywords
- mobile devices, mobile communication technology, face-to-face communication, relationship quality, closeness, social connectedness, interpersonal communication, dyadic interaction
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