The influence of interventions on the factors of pedestrian smartphone use: a multicenter, large-sample observational study on “smombie” (Preprint)

Abstract

Background: Smombie is common with the high penetration of smartphones, and many studies have focused on the prevalence of smombie phenomenon. However, multicenter, large-sample, and effective interventions studies to reduce this unsafe behavior are scarce in this field.

Objective: Through a multicenter, large-sample study, understanding the current situation and influencing factors of pedestrian smartphone use while crossing the road in China “smombie”. Moreover, the effect of interventions is explained by analyzing the impact of two combination interventions on reducing the use of smartphones while crossing.

Methods: Researchers conducted an intervention study of smartphone use by pedestrians while crossing the road in four different Chinese cities (Changchun, Lanzhou, Zhuzhou, and Luzhou), first without any interventions for 11 days and then with visual and auditory interventions for the next 11days. The researchers collected the sex, age and type of smartphone used by pedestrians, and recorded the weather conditions, date and time of the day. Chi-square tests were used to evaluate the statistical differences between the variables. Bivariate and multivariate logistic regressions were adopted to analyze the influence of different variables on pedestrian smartphone use (two categories / multiple categories), and the effect of interventions.

Results: A total of 25,860 pedestrians were observed in this study, 13,086 of them without any interventions and 12,774 with visual and auditory interventions. The number of unsafe smartphone users was 4,289 (32.78%) without interventions. The prevalence of women was significantly higher than men, the prevalence on sunny and cloudy days was significantly higher than on rainy days, and the prevalence among the people of the age range 11-44 years was the highest compared to other age groups. Bivariate and multivariate logistic regressions indicated that sex, age, weather, different times of the day and week were the influencing factors of unsafe use of smartphones while crossing the road. The number of unsafe smartphone users was significantly decreased to 3,579 (28.02%) (X2=69.120, P<.001) with visual and auditory interventions. Bivariate logistic regression showed that visual and auditory interventions were protective factors against unsafe smartphone use; multivariate logistic regression showed that two interventions were protective factors against “earphones,” “holding,” “slight smombie,” and “severe smombie” conditions.

Conclusion: The study found that the proportion of pedestrian smartphone use while crossing the road was relatively high, but the visual and auditory interventions could reduce this unsafe behavior significantly. This study contributed to our understanding of current situation of smartphone use among pedestrians in China and has further provided a new paradigm for global interventions on unsafe smartphone use behavior.