A bird's-eye view of phubbing: How adult observations of phone use impact judgments, epistemic trust, and interpersonal trust

Abstract

Research demonstrates that phubbing—the act of snubbing someone in a social setting by looking at one's mobile phone—interferes with the quality and satisfaction of social interactions. This article examined how observations of an adult's phone use during a social interaction impact different social judgments. Adult participants (n = 331) watched a 3-min video showing four speakers having a discussion around a table. One speaker looked at their phone intermittently during the meeting (five times for 2–3 s each) while not interacting with the other speakers. Participants were asked to rate characteristics (e.g., attentiveness) of all four speakers and evaluate who they could trust both epistemically (e.g., for knowledge) and interpersonally (e.g., for social connection). Participants also provided information about their own technology use. Results indicated that participants’ judgments, ratings of interpersonal trust, and epistemic trust toward the phone user were significantly lower when compared to their ratings toward the non-phone users in the video, especially among female participants. Additionally, the more participants reported using their own phones during group interactions, the more leniently they rated the phone user in the video. This research provides evidence that overseeing acts of co-present mobile phone use are negatively evaluated. This has implications for how adults view technology use during social engagements.