Are you a Nomophobe?

In today’s day and age, many of us rely on our phones as a source of constant entertainment, using them to habitually text, tweet and play Sudoku.

However, for some of us, these devices have become more of a social crutch, with the absence of our mobile phones causing us great levels of anxiety. This condition, or the fear of being without your mobile phone, is called nomophobia.

“iPhones are capable of becoming an extension of our selves such that when separated, we experience a lessening of ‘self’ and a negative physiological state,” says Russell Clayton, an assistant professor at Florida State University. Back in January, Russell studied how smartphone separation can link to anxiety as doctoral candidate at the University of Missouri.

Scientists at the University of Iowa also recently conducted research to measure iPhone codependence.

Over the course of the study, participants were asked to respond to the following statements on a scale of 1 (strongly disagree) to 7 (strongly agree). Total scores were calculated by adding the responses to each item, with higher scores corresponding to more severe levels of nomophobia.

Try answering this two-part questionnaire for yourself; if your total score is higher than 80, you may want to consider doing a smartphone detox.

1. I would feel uncomfortable without constant access to information through my smartphone.
2. I would be annoyed if I could not look information up on my smartphone when I wanted to do so.
3. Being unable to get the news (e.g., happenings, weather, etc.) on my smartphone would make me nervous.
4. I would be annoyed if I could not use my smartphone and/or its capabilities when I wanted to do so.
5. Running out of battery in my smartphone would scare me.
6. If I were to run out of credits or hit my monthly data limit, I would panic.
7. If I did not have a data signal or could not connect to Wi-Fi, then I would constantly check to see if I had a signal or could find a Wi-Fi network.
8. If I could not use my smartphone, I would be afraid of getting stranded somewhere.
9. If I could not check my smartphone for a while, I would feel a desire to check it.

If I did not have my smartphone with me:

1. I would feel anxious because I could not instantly communicate with my family and/or friends.
2. I would be worried because my family and/or friends could not reach me.
3. I would feel nervous because I would not be able to receive text messages and calls.
4. I would be anxious because I could not keep in touch with my family and/or friends.
5. I would be nervous because I could not know if someone had tried to get a hold of me.
6. I would feel anxious because my constant connection to my family and friends would be broken.
7. I would be nervous because I would be disconnected from my online identity.
8. I would be uncomfortable because I could not stay up-to-date with social media and online networks.
9. I would feel awkward because I could not check my notifications for updates from my connections and online networks.
10. I would feel anxious because I could not check my email messages.
11. I would feel weird because I would not know what to do.