Manalac, Ma. Ricci A.

BSPSY 2103

TITLE: Attention or Distraction? The Impact of Mobile Phone on Users'

Psychological Well-Being

People now use mobile phone technology extensively in their daily lives. Mobile technology is
used by people, especially young people, for a variety of things. Users are motivated to use mobile
phones because of the new features and functionalities that manufacturers provide. The mobile phone's
adaptability enables the seamless blending of work, play, and social interaction and improves life in
many more ways. The accumulation of data that the research has shown portrays that cell phone
distraction, particularly among newly independent individuals, is an increasing issue. The idea of
cognitive emotion preoccupation as the fundamental mechanism through which mobile phone
distraction results in a decline in psychological well-being is a significant contribution to the research.
Distraction-conflict theory, which shows that users with excellent attention control are better at coping
with the negative effects of mobile phone distraction, supports the proposed paradigm. Utilizing
statistical procedures, the data, which consisted of 914 university students in China, was examined. The
findings suggest that cognitive emotional preoccupation—which has a detrimental impact on users'
psychological wellbeing—had a substantial positive connection with mobile phone distraction. The data
also show that cognitive emotional preoccupation in relation to mobile phone distraction and
psychological well-being was controlled by attention control. Along with limitations and future research,
the theoretical and practical consequences are also covered.

This study intends to investigate the ways in which mobile phone distraction promotes cognitive
emotional preoccupation, which ultimately has an impact on users' psychological wellbeing. Individuals'
attentional control, meantime, contributes to improving their psychological health. The ability to limit
one's attention to stimuli that are pertinent to their current purpose is known as attention control,
which reduces the degree to which bottom-up effects seize our attention. According to several
researchers, paying close attention might reduce the amount of cognitive processing information by
focusing and concentrating on the main goal. This study investigates how attention control modifies the
relationship between cognitive emotional preoccupation, mobile phone distraction, and psychological
well-being.

Utilizing mobile technology can result in giving up other objectives, including forgoing other
commitments and reducing social interactions with friends and family.  Due to the rising usage of mobile
technology, users have developed checking habits in which they routinely glance at their mobile phone
applications and it draws the user's attention away from work-related tasks. The variety of mobile phone
features and functions encourage excessive usage behavior, and users have trouble managing how
much time they spend using the device and are easily sidetracked.  Such diversion promotes behavioral
preoccupation in the cognitive and emotional domains and obsessive thought patterns involving the use
of technology are referred to as cognitive emotional preoccupation. A user's excessive usage behavior
creates a strong link in their long-term memory and their behavioral tendencies are linked to their
reactions. Preoccupation with a behavior result in strong cravings to engage in the habit, which leads to
hazardous behavior. Cognitive emotional preoccupation is frequently cited as one of the key signs of
problematic technology usage in the literature about addiction or pathologic use. A user may find it
difficult to sustain a strong willingness to utilize a mobile device due to cognitive emotional
preoccupation, which can lead to unintentional and even problematic use. With the use of a mobile
phone, a higher degree of preoccupation creates strong emotions and thoughts, and users have a strong
need to use it even when it is prohibited, like when operating a car, which is dangerous. Consequently, it
is hypothesized that—

Hypothesis 1: Cognitive emotional preoccupation is positively correlated with mobile phone distraction.

The variety of functionality on mobile phones raises the cognitive burden on users. Cognitive
distraction results from such cognitive load. Cognitive distraction is the inability of a user to process two
or more different forms of information at once. A loss in attention and focus may be brought on by
phone calls, texts, and social media networking sites. Continuous use of mobile technology has been
linked to psychological distress, according to prior study. Users anticipate satisfaction from using mobile
phone technology, but the loss of control over usage has a detrimental emotional and cognitive impact.
Previous studies have revealed a negative relationship between mobile phone use and feelings of
wellbeing, mood and anxiety disorders, exhaustion, and mental health symptoms such sadness and
sleep disturbance. Consequently, it is hypothesized that—

Hypothesis 2: The use of mobile devices when distracted has a detrimental impact on psychological
health.

The daily working routine, productivity, physical health, social interactions, and emotional well-being are
all negatively impacted by excessive mobile phone use. They also mentioned that a recent study looked
at how stress is brought on by excessive mobile phone use. Cognitive emotional preoccupation is caused
by the constant consumption of news and information, attention-demanding social networking sites,
work activities, and various forms of entertainment. The users' long-term memory begins to form
clusters as a result of cognitive emotional preoccupation. These clusters have powerful impulses that
affect behavior, including mental or emotional responses. Preoccupation can be unsettling since it can
be challenging for people to focus on other duties when preoccupying thoughts and emotions are
present. These unfavorable feelings impair psychological health and eventually cause users to ignore
important facets of their lives, such their family, their career, and their education. Consequently, it is
hypothesized that—

Hypothesis 3: Cognitive emotional obsession has a poor relationship with psychological health.

For the following reasons, the researchers anticipated that cognitive emotion preoccupation would have
a mediating role in the connection between mobile phone distraction and psychological wellbeing. First,
using a phone excessively while distracted results in behavior preoccupation on an emotional and
cognitive level. Such actions make it tough to resist when a strong desire to use a mobile phone arises.
As a result of their increased usage of mobile devices, intense emotions and thoughts start to form,
which eventually leads to depression and a decline in their wellbeing. Second, past research has
hypothesized that users of mobile phones are overloaded with information, heavily preoccupied, or
"addicted," which limits their ability to manage the information properly. When a user's cognitive
capacity exceeds the recommended amount of technology use, bad things could happen. An earlier
study revealed a negative relationship between mobile phone use and the idea of wellbeing, which
causes interpersonal issues. Third, an obsession with using a phone can lead to unfavorable feelings like
emotional tiredness, fatigue, and worry, which have an impact on their health and social interactions.
These feelings lessen the users' psychological health. Consequently, it is hypothesized that—

Hypothesis 4: The link between mental health and cell phone distraction is mediated by cognitive
emotional preoccupation.

For the methodology, the researchers used Sample and Data Collection. Before the data gathering
process, pilot research was carried out to assess the construct's validity and reliability. 50 volunteers
from a large university in China were given the questionnaire online. To ensure the validity and
reliability of the construct, they conducted an exploratory factor analysis. Two items were taken out of
the updated final questionnaire based on the findings. Online empirical data were gathered by sending
invites to students via university email and disseminating the questionnaire's URL across university
students' social networks (WeChat, Weibo, and QQ). The targeted sample included students from a
significant Chinese university. This sample is appropriate given that the majority of mobile phone users
are younger generations, who also make up the bulk of active users. Students are therefore regarded as
a suitable source of data for this investigation. It is confirmed that university students make up a portion
of the population, and that many of their traits are shared by the general community. Students are more
likely than other users of technology to exhibit harmful online conduct. We invited students to fill out a
questionnaire with their student ID number to check the validity of the records and to prevent
duplication and redundancy. It was overall efficient and appropriate because the researchers used
hypothesis testing, moderate mediation analysis, and structural model. They made sure that they have
validity and reliability of measurement items, data analysis and results with tables.

Moreover, there are other things that the research acquired such as Measures. They modified several of
the questionnaire's items in light of the current study's context after adapting it from the literature. A 5-
point Likert scale, with 1 denoting strong agreement and 5 denoting severe disagreement, was used to
score each item. Age, gender, and frequency of use were all controlled demographic characteristics that
were measured. Second, the assessment of mobile phone distraction. They used the four-item construct
to measure mobile phone distraction which was adapted from Davis et al (2002). The items illustrate
how frequently people use their phones while engaging in other activities. Third, the assessment of
cognitive emotional pre-occupation. A six-item scale was used to assess cognitive emotional
preoccupation, and it was modified from Caplan and High (2006) and Zheng and Lee (2016). The objects
reflect the desire and thoughts to use a mobile phone after a period of inactivity. 0.95% is the CA value.
And lastly, attention control. To test attention regulation, an eight-item scale that was developed from
Farmer and Sundberg (1986) and Brooks (2015) was used. The items show frequent attentional shifting
while distracted and sustained focus. To gauge the benefits of attention control, some items were
reverse coded. 0.7 is the CA value.

The ramifications of mobile phone distraction on psychological wellbeing were the main focus of the
study. The main finding of this article, which undermines users' psychological wellbeing, is that mobile
phone distraction encourages cognitive emotional preoccupation with conduct. Additionally, those who
have strong attention control can effortlessly manage their daily regular activities and maintain focus.
Future studies could produce more intriguing findings about the detrimental effects of cell phone usage
if they incorporate the various aspects suggested in the study's limitation. This study presents some
significant theoretical ramifications. First, by exploring the underlying mechanism by which mobile
phone distraction affects psychological well-being, the present study adds to the body of knowledge on
mobile phone distraction. The paper explores the potential negative effects of problematic mobile
phone use and potentially expands its genesis. The current study adds to the body of work on the
distraction-conflict theory by highlighting the detrimental effects of mobile phone distraction on
psychological health. By analyzing its applicability to distracted driving and cognitive emotional behavior,
it also supports the distraction conflict theory. A recent development in the realm of distracted by
mobile phones is cognitive emotional preoccupation. Second, the current study intends to clarify the
relationship between cognitive emotion preoccupation and mobile phone distraction, as well as how
this affects psychological wellbeing. By studying the moderating role of attention control in the
association between mobile phone distraction, cognitive emotional preoccupation, and psychological
well-being, which prior studies have not explored, the study completes and adds to earlier studies on
attention control.

There are various practical implications of the current study. The first step in avoiding the negative
effects of mobile phone distractions is for users to cut back on usage and adjust their behavior in order
to get over psychological obstacles. The findings also have implications for laws that require educational
institutions to inform students of the detrimental psychological effects of excessive mobile phone use so
that they can cut back while carrying out their daily tasks. The study's findings also imply that users with
strong attention control are less likely to experience the harmful effects of mobile phone distraction. In
order to prevent negative effects, users should be more goal-focused and moderate in their mobile
phone usage.