Generation “Always On” Turned Off. Effects of Smartphone Separation on Anxiety Mediated by the Fear of Missing Out

The present study was designed to analyze psychological effects of separating users from their smartphones regarding anxiety and “Fear of Missing Out” (FoMO). In a laboratory experiment, participants (n = 85) went through a seven-minute waiting session. They sat alone in a room - either with or without their phone. Results revealed that participants who waited without their phones reported significantly higher levels of anxiety, afterwards. Further, partial mediation was revealed with FoMO significantly mediating the impact of phone separation on anxiety. The findings suggest a psychological relevance of smartphones which reaches beyond the mere functionalities and applications. It is the entity of the phone itself which seems to be psychologically relevant offering a promising approach for analyzing psychological aspects of humans interacting with technological devices.