DEPARTMENT OF COMPUTER SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

RESEARCH PAPER
ON
Nomophobia is Dangerous

SUBJECT: COMMUNITY CONTENT

SUBJECT CODE:

Department of COMPUTER SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

SHARDA UNIVERSITY, GREATER NOIDA

Students details
Saurav kumar (2020586434)
Suman Sharma(2020588295)
Nikhil Jha(2020515086)
Nikita Anand(2020468119)
ABSTRACT
Nomophobia Is A Psychological Condition in Which People Are Terrified of Losing Their
Access to Their Mobile Phones. The Term Nomophobia Was Coined to Describe A "Fear
of A Particular/Specific Thing" Based On DSM-IV Categories. A Person's Usage of A
Mobile Phone Might Indicate A Variety Of Psychological Concerns, Including Low Self-
Esteem And An Extroverted Personality. This Issue's Global Influence Is Becoming More
Pronounced. Other Mental Diseases Including Social Phobia, Anxiety, And Panic
Disorder May Aggravate Nomophobic Symptoms. It's Difficult to Discern If A Patient
Becomes Nomophobic As A Result of a Phone Addiction or Anxiety Issues That Manifest
as Nomophobic Symptoms. Nomophobia Symptoms and Signs Include Anxiety,
Respiratory Changes, Shaking, Sweating, Agitation, Disorientation, And Tachycardia.
Nomophobia Might Be A Sign of Another Condition. As A Result, While Diagnosing It, We
Must Use Considerable Caution. Some Mental Illnesses Can Promote Nomophobia, And
Vice Versa. It's Tough to Tell Whether A Patient's Nomophobic Symptoms Are Caused by
A Phone Addiction or Anxiety Concerns That Present as Nomophobic Symptoms.
Anxiety, Respiratory Abnormalities, Shaking, Sweating, Agitation, Disorientation, And
Tachycardia Are All Symptoms and Indicators of Nomophobia. Nomophobia Might Be A
Symptom of Something Else. As A Result, We Must Proceed with Caution While
Diagnosing It. Nomophobia Can Be Exacerbated by Some Mental Conditions, And Vice
Versa.

INTRODUCTION
Smartphones provide a variety of advantages and conveniences while also assisting
with task accomplishment. Smartphones have gained huge appeal in today's culture as a
result of their communication capabilities and people's connection with them. Users
claim that technology has morphed into an extension of their bodies, influencing their
identities and lifestyles. These technologies have unquestionably become an
indisputable part of modern life, generating behavioural shifts in daily activities and
routines. Because of the pervasiveness of mobile technology, the smartphone has
become a valuable resource in people's lives. However, the number of problems caused
by cell phone use has increased considerably in recent years. As a result, the number of
inquiries into the problem has increased, and these events have been labelled addictive,
antisocial, and harmful. Smartphone addiction is now being treated as if it were any
other life-threatening drug addiction. As a result of the excessive use of this gadget and
the reliance that it creates, it has become a public health problem, and a new disease
known as nomophobia is on the rise and being classified as a psychiatric disorder.
Nomophobia is a contemporary phobia that originated during the digital era and is
spreading as the smartphone becomes more integrated into life. This term combines the
words "non-mobile" and "phobia," and it describes the anxiety, worry, and discomfort
that comes with not having a mobile device on hand at all times or not having access to
one when needed. To put it another way, nomophobia is the dread of being cut off from
the digital world. Nomophobia has four key characteristics and/or causes:
(1) Fear of not being able to converse with other people.
(2) fear of not being able to connect
(3) anxiety over not having instant access to information.
(4) Reluctance to give up the convenience of mobile phones.
Nomophobia encourages the onset of mental illnesses, personality disorders, and issues
with self-esteem, loneliness, and happiness, particularly among the young. All of this has
a significant influence on one's health, which has bad consequences in other areas of life
such as school and job, as well as putting professional practise in jeopardy owing to
frequent diversions. It also affects individual relationships and relationships, causing a
sense of alienation and isolation from the real world. People are increasingly fearful of
losing speedy access to any information or communication with others as a result of this
current condition, which increases indicators of depression, anxiety, fury,
aggressiveness, tension, nervousness, emotional stability, and sleep disruptions.
Similarly, internet use, dependency on social media, and worry all show a clear and
significant link to nomophobia. It is defined as a digital disease as a result of these
factors, with a higher chance of suffering among young individuals aged 12 to 18, as well
as those who have an emotionally dependent mentality. The Internet, as a technology
whose accessibility has been expanded by the proliferation of mobile devices, cannot be
overlooked in this technological range. As a result, both cell phones and access to the
Internet have become addictive. These new digital addictions are more common in
more developed locations, where residents have the financial and technological
resources to acquire the requisite technology. Adolescents are the most vulnerable age
group for nomophobia, as well as other symptoms like Internet and video game
addiction, and the ensuing psychological and emotional implications, due to the
characteristics of today's culture. Youngsters are now confident in their ability to use
digital media to learn, communicate, interact, play, and socialise with others. Some
young individuals claim that digital contact is preferable to physical interaction,
resulting in cognitive, behavioural, and physiological changes. Sedentary behaviour,
eating disorders, sleep issues, sadness, annoyance, hostility, and low self-esteem are just
a few of the difficulties that come from this constant and abusive behaviour. The
influence of culture on the incidence of nomophobia has recently been studied, which is
a first in the area. According to the findings, culture has a significant impact on human
behaviour when it comes to technology However, little research has been done on how
culture effects people's perceptions of nomophobia. This research examines the current
state of knowledge about a disease that has become increasingly common among the
youthful population as a result of modern society's technological achievements. It
demonstrates that individuals in today's culture are not only addicted to the Internet,
video games, and technology in general, but also fearful of not having the means and
technical tools to do fundamental activities such as socialising, talking, having fun, and
learning. We're dealing with a brand-new issue that's unique to the digital era and is
being exacerbated by people's increasing reliance on mobile devices in their everyday
lives. As a result, this study examines the current situation of the nomophobia issue in
high-impact scientific research.
LITERATURE REVIEW
Several studies looked at various elements of nomophobia, including early childhood
mobile phone exposure, the impact on psychological and physical dependency, and so
on. Starting with the most basic and widespread aspect of the global problem of
nomophobia, which is young children's first contact with cell phones. The failure of
parents to keep a careful check on their children's life is blamed on them. When it comes
to the underlying cause for the rise in the number of mobile phones and services, these
mobile connection firms play a key role, by producing a bigger number of attractive
apps and features in mobile phones that no one can refuse.
Sales and manufacturing of mobile phones, as well as associated services, have grown
rapidly in a short period of time, according to customer demand. This is because
Nomophobia is viewed as a result of the interaction between humans and
communication technologies. According to numerous notable researches conducted by
UK research organisations, the rate of nomophobic population increased from 53
percent to 66 percent from 2001 to 2012, and the most intriguing fact was that females
were at the top of this graph of experiencing anxiety about their mobile phones at this
time. When we talk about people's psychological and physical dependence as a result of
nomophobia, the question is if we truly want to worry about it.
Physical dependency refers to the point at which people are so reliant on their mobile
phones for tasks such as shopping, purchasing vegetables, ordering food, paying online
bills, and so on, that they are unwilling to take any pain to stand and go out to complete
all of these tasks in order to keep them active for as long as possible. Physical reliance is
connected to social phobia, which is influenced by nomophobia. This occurs when a
sample of the country's youth is taken and shows serious effects of nomophobia in
them, as a nomophobic person feels anxious at all times when he or she is away from
the phone's contact, which leads to social phobia, which includes shyness in public,
unfriendliness because he or she may have a desire to use their phones, nervousness,
quiet, and aloofness, and so on. Nomophobia is growing more prevalent, making it more
difficult to control.

METHOD
Study design
This study had a descriptive-analytical design.

Study Population
There are 145 peoples aged>18 of both genders mostly are students.
Study Tools
A pretested questionnaire was distributed among the peoples. It consisted of two
segments. The first segment consisted of basic sociodemographic data such as age,
gender, place of origin, relationship status, and perceived self-addiction to smartphones
(operational definition: Usage >3 h/day). The second segment consisted of 27 questions
based on studies. The first 16 questions assessed nomophobia and the remaining eight
evaluated the attitude of people toward smartphone usage. The questions assessed the
following responses:
1. Usually, check your Whatsapp/Facebook/SMS/Youtube notification as soon as
you receive them during the day

2. Usually, check Whatsapp/Facebook/SMS/Youtube, etc notification received

while resting in light sleep?
3. Usually, impulsively check for Whatsapp/FB/SMS/Youtube notifications while
attending a class or in an important meeting?

4. Usually, impulsively check for Whatsapp/FB/Youtube/SMS notification right

after waking up from sleep?

5. Constantly check my mobile phone so as not to miss conversations between my

friends/other people on Twitter/FB/Whatsapp

6. Having a hard time concentrating in class, while doing assignments, or while

working due to mobile use.
7. Preferring talking with my smartphone buddies to hanging out with my real-life
friends or with the other members of my family

8. Usually, check your mobile phone even while engaged in group participation

9. Using your mobile phone longer than you had intended to

10. Always thinking that you should shorten your mobile phone usage

11. The people around you complain that you do not pay attention to them due to
mobile phone use
12. Get annoyed or shout if someone asks you to decrease the use of mobile phone

13. Feeling impatient and fretful when you are not holding your mobile phone

14. Experience stress when not using your mobile phone

15. Experiencing lightheadedness or blurred vision due to excessive mobile phone

use
16. Feeling pain in the wrists or at the back of the neck while using a mobile phone

17. Feeling tired and lacking adequate sleep due to excessive mobile phone use

18. Cannot imagine living without my mobile phone

19. Compulsively respond to calls or messages at places where it is dangerous to do

so like driving or crossing the road
20. Average total time spent (hour) on using Mobile phone per day?

21. What do you use your phone for? [Education (Udemy etc)]
22. What do you use your phone for? [E-Commerce (Amazon, Flipkart, etc)]
23. What do you use your phone for? [Entertainment ( youtube, Hotstar, gaming
etc )]
24. What do you use your phone for? [Financial (Banking app, Paytm, etc)]
25. What do you use your phone for? [Travel(ola , Uber etc)]
TABLE A: RESULTS OF SURVEY
Usually, check your Whatsapp/Facebook/SMS/Youtube notification as soon as you
receive them during the day
YES NO
74 71
Usually, check Whatsapp/Facebook/SMS/Youtube, etc notification received while
resting in light sleep?
YES NO
52 93
Usually, impulsively check for Whatsapp/FB/SMS/Youtube notifications while
attending a class or in an important meeting?
YES NO
102 43
Usually, impulsively check for Whatsapp/FB/Youtube/SMS notification right after
waking up from sleep?
YES NO
74 71
Constantly check my mobile phone so as not to miss conversations between my
friends/other people on Twitter/FB/Whatsapp
YES NO

79 66

Having a hard time concentrating in class, while doing assignments, or while

working due to mobile us
Strongly Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly agree
disagree
0 42 56 42 15
Preferring talking with my smartphone buddies to hanging out with my real-life
friends or with the other members of my family
YES NO
74 71
Usually check your mobile phone even while engaged in group participation
YES NO
46 99
Using your mobile phone longer than you had intended to
YES NO MAY BE
42 28 75
Always thinking that you should shorten your mobile phone usage
YES NO MAY BE
79 33 33

The people around you complain that you do not pay attention to them due to
mobile phone use
YES NO MAY BE
42 79 24
Get annoyed or shout if someone asks you to decrease the use of mobile phone
YES NO MAY BE
79 24 42
Feeling impatient and fretful when you are not holding your mobile phone
YES NO MAY BE
42 79 24
Experience stress when not using your mobile phone
YES NO
51 94
Experiencing light headedness or blurred vision due to excessive mobile phone
use
ALWAYS NEVER SOMETIMES
14 80 51

Feeling pain in the wrists or at the back of the neck while using a mobile phone
ALWAYS NEVER SOMETIMES
51 57 37

Feeling tired and lacking adequate sleep due to excessive mobile phone use
ALWAYS NEVER SOMETIMES
25 33 87
Cannot imagine living without my mobile phone
Strongly Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly agree
disagree
10 14 47 60 14
Compulsively respond to calls or messages at places where it is dangerous to do
so like driving or crossing the road
YES NO
18 127
Average total time spent (hour) on using Mobile phone per day?
0-4HRS 4-8HRS <8HRS
56 49 40
Each question was mandatory. The responses were graded on a 5 point Likert scale
from strongly disagree (1) to strongly agree (5). The score >40 was categorized under
nomophobia, 34–39 score - at risk of nomophobia.

Statistical Analysis
Microsoft Excel was used to gather and analyse the data. The study population's
baseline characteristics were tabulated using descriptive statistics. A frequency table
was used to illustrate sociodemographic characteristics. Nomophobia's prevalence was
expressed as a percentage. The Chi-square test was used to examine the relationship
between two categorical variables, with a significance level of P 0.05 regarded
statistically significant.

RESULTS
A total of 145 participants participated in the study, with 45 meetings the inclusion
criteria. The majority of the participants were under the age of 20. (98 percent). In
comparison to men, females were in greater numbers (61.3 per cent) (38.6 percent ).
The pupils were mostly from rural regions (62.7 percent). The majority of students
(84.1%) did not have a committed relationship. A large proportion of pupils reported a
self-perceived smartphone addiction (71 percent) [Table 1]. ]. The majority of the
individuals in the current study fell into the category of frank nomophobia when it
comes to the prevalence of nomophobia (86.9 percent). Only 7.6% were normal, while
over 13% were in danger of developing nomophobia. Nomophobia was shown to be
more common in females (64.2 per cent) than in males (35.7 percent ) [Table 2]. Table 1
shows a statistically significant relationship between gender and nomophobia (P =
0.003), as well as a statistically significant relationship between reported smartphone
addiction and nomophobia (P = 0.0001). In the current poll, 33.8 percent of respondents
said they used their smartphones regularly at work. The majority of respondents
(81.4%) disputed that they checked for feeds during class. Around 63.4 per cent of
people did not expect a speedy response. Many students (45.5 per cent) were
unconcerned about battery drain or network signal loss. The majority expressed
dissatisfaction with not being able to use their smartphones whenever they wanted. The
majority of pupils (63.4 per cent) expressed little dissatisfaction with their lack of
technological knowledge. Nearly 46% carried their phone with them at all times. Only
21.4 per cent were concerned about exceeding the data limit too soon. Only 27.6% of
people felt compelled to answer phone calls. When removed from their phone for an
extended period, 47.6% reported feeling anxious. Only 15.2 percent of students agreed
to spend extended periods on the phone. The majority felt that excessive smartphone
use harms academic achievement. Sleep disruption was reported by 40.7 per cent of
pupils owing to smartphone use at night. As many as 42% of people admitted to taking
phone calls while studying or performing other activities. Only 33% of those polled said
they used their smartphones for clinical or academic purposes. The majority of students
(51.7%) used their smartphones to download academic materials. Some pupils (39.3%)
admitted to becoming distracted during exams. The majority of students (51.7 per cent)
were aware that using mobile phones during exams encourages cheating. The majority
of people (75.2 per cent) said they used their devices to avoid loneliness in public
settings.
Table 1: Sociodemographic characteristics of the study population and association with
nomophobia
Sociodemographic Response Frequency (%) Chi-square test
variables
Age (in years) ≤20 142 (98) P=0.224
>20 3 (2)
Gender Male 56 (38.6) P=0.003
Female 89 (61.3)
Place of origin Urban 54 (37.2) P=0.584
Rural 91 (62.7)
Perceived self- Yes 103 (71.1) P=0.0001
addiction No 42 (28.9)
Relationship status Committed 23 (15.8) P=0.446
Non-committed 122 (84.1
*P<0.05: Statistically significant

Table 2: Prevalence of nomophobia

Gender Score, n (%)

Normal At-risk Nomophobia
<34 34–39 >40
Male 4 (36.3) 7 (87.5) 45 (35.71)
Female 7 (63.6) 1 (12.5) 81 (64.28)

Total 11 (7.5) 8 (5.5) 126 (86.8)

DISCUSSION
The incidence of nomophobia among medical students, as well as behavioural
characteristics of nomophobia and attitudes about smartphone usage, were assessed in
this study. The findings found that around 87 per cent were nomophobic, 13% were in
danger of becoming nomophobic, and 7.6% were normal. Females had a higher rate of
nomophobia (64.28 per cent) than males (35.71 percent ). The current research found a
link between gender and nomophobia, as well as a link between perceived self-
addiction to cellphones and nomophobia. The current study identified “annoyance at
not being able to use the smartphone, constant clinging to the phone, feeling stressed if
the phone was not used for a week, knowing the negative impact on academic
performance, sleep deprivation, and compulsiveness for taking calls while studying,
knowledge of fraudulent practises with smartphones, and using smartphones to avoid
loneliness” as the most recurrent themes. The frequency of nomophobia in this study
was higher than in other research from across the world, which ranged from 35 per cent
to 73 percent. The present study's greater prevalence rate might be related to the cost
and ease of access to internet packages, which provide 24/7 access to the internet,
making it impossible for students to give up smartphone use. Females had a greater
prevalence rate in this study, which is consistent with Gezgin and Cakr's findings. In
terms of gender, however, there was no substantial difference. The frequency of
nomophobia among medical students was not studied in this study. The findings do,
however, point to a rising trend of smartphone addiction and the rise of related
psychobehavioral issues. However, contrary to the current study, a negative association
between mobile phone usage and academic performance was reported by several
studies.

Strengths and Limitations

The current study has made a significant contribution to raising understanding of
nomophobia, its behavioural characteristics, and attitudes against smartphone use.
Kids, instructors, and family members may be motivated to implement remedial
techniques so that nomophobia does not develop into a psychiatric condition that
jeopardises students' futures. Because the study was limited to a convenient sample of
medical students, it may not be representative of the whole student body. Furthermore,
diverse uses of cellphones in academic, therapeutic, and social situations, as well as
their impact on students' psychobehavioral characteristics, should be investigated
further. Experimental investigations, in addition to questionnaire surveys, can be used
to determine the causality of various influences on nomophobia.

CONCLUSION
Medical students, like everyone else in today's technology-driven culture, have
succumbed to nomophobia, and the current study backs up the growing tendency of
nomophobia among medical students. Nomophobia has also been found to be more
prevalent among women. The current study also focuses on the changing psychological
and behavioural features of smartphone users, such as compulsiveness, aggravation,
stress, poor academic performance, and smartphone clinginess. Increasing student and
educator understanding of nomophobia and its accompanying behavioural problems
will aid in the implementation of ways to counteract the negative impacts of
smartphone use, such as nomophobia, and to enhance the means to battle to put
smartphones to effective use.

REFERENCE
1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nomophobia
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82. RED’SHINE Publication. Inc. 2016:213. [Google Scholar]
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from: https://www.revolvy.com/page/Nomophobia .
5. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6510111/
6. https://ijip.in/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/18.01.110.20190701.pdf