1. Are You Plugged In?: Development and Validation of a Plugged In Scale
Katelyn R. Schwieters & Kerry S. Kleyman
Metropolitan State University
Abstract
The intensification of smartphone use is becoming universal. The current study investigated a new phenomenon, conceptualized as “plugged in.” Plugged in individuals share characteristics of addiction, dependency, and obsession towards their smartphones. When a smartphone notification interrupts an individual’s present context, the notification becomes a priority, thus shifting their attention out of the present context to attention to the virtual context of the smartphone. This repeated use is linked to higher stress levels. EFA revealed a one-component solution with 34 items. An additional study was conducted with the 34-item scale to reduce items and provide convergent and discriminant validity. Results revealed a final instrument that reliably captures the construct of “plugged in.”
Method
Scales Used For Construction
Study Two
A second pilot study sought to further validate the Plugged In Scale by removing any unnecessary items and to consider an addition to other items that would provide convergent and discriminate validity. Pilot study two also sought to assess a potential stress reduction intervention.
Smartphone Basic Needs Scale (α = .83, .82, .79, .88)
Study One
Technology Use Scale (α = .81)
An initial pilot study was conducted to create and develop an instrument that measures the novel construct Plugged In. Although several existing types of technology and stress measures, a new measure was needed because no existing measures are current enough nor capture the characteristics of Plugged In.
Intensity of Smartphone Use Scale (α = .84)
Mobile Phone Addiction Scale (α = .86)
Passion Scale – Obsessive Passion Scale (α = .89)
Technostress Questionnaire (α = .63, .80, .77, .79, .81)
One-hundred and nine participants from a Midwestern University were selected for pilot study two of whom 68% were women and the sample mean age was years (SD = 10.03; Range ).
Information Overload Measure (α = .75)
Information Communication Technology Demands Scale (α = .87)
Participants
The sample size consisted of 562 participants, 56% of the participants were women and the mean age was years (SD = 9.75; range ). Participants were from a Midwestern University as well as crowd sourced from Amazon.com’s Mechanical TURK (mTURK).
Stress Mindset Measure – General (α = .86)
The Perceived Stress Scale (α = .85)
Participants completed a packet of measures, answered several items related to their personal smartphone use and demographics.
Materials
Scales Used
In order to generate items for a measure that would capture the elements of being Plugged In, participants completed a packet of measures on addiction, dependency, obsessive passion and technostress from smartphone use, general stress measures and demographics.
Plugged In Scale (α = .94)
Digital Natives Assessment Scale (α = .91)
Mobile Internet Time Perception Measure (α = .82)
Mindful Attention and Awareness Scale (α = .82)
Results
Study One
H1: Exploratory factor analysis revealed a one-component 34-item solution (α = .94). After rotation, the first component accounted for 37.91% of the variance. Factor loadings of each item are presented in Table 1. Component 1 consisted of 34 of the 76 variables, M = (SD = .5893). All scales were standardized. These were variables that had positive loadings and addressed Plugged In. The remaining 42 items were dropped from further analysis because they either failed to load on either factor or loaded equally on both factors.
In effort to understand the impact of Plugged In on smartphone use behavior, the Plugged In Scale was correlated with the number of participant’s self-reported daily hours spent on smartphones. The results were significant, where β = .101, se = .043 (p < .05), meaning that Plugged In individuals spend more hours a day on their smartphones.
H2: The Plugged In Scale was correlated against the Perceived Stress Scale. Results showed a significant relationship, β = .513, se = .05 (p < .001), where being Plugged In leads to greater stress, supporting hypothesis two.
Study Two
Convergent and discriminant validity of the 34-item Plugged In Scale were examined through exploratory factor analysis. Results from EFA revealed a one-factor solution. The first component accounted for 36.34% of the total variance. Variables were selected that had a positive loading over Component one consisted of 20 variables on a 5-point scale. The mean score of all items combined was 2.57 (SD = .992). The Plugged In Scale shows high internal consistency (α = .94).
Plugged In Scale was correlated with other technology measures to further validate the scale. The Plugged In Scale correlated significantly with the DNAS, which was expected as both scales reliably capture the characteristics of high-intensity technology use. The Plugged In Scale did not correlate with the MITPM, however, the MITPM does not capture the same elements as being Plugged In. Table 2 displays the correlation findings.
The Plugged In Scale was correlated with participant’s self-reported average times they “check” their smartphones each day. Results indicated a significant and positive correlation (r = .455, p < .001), meaning that individuals who are more Plugged In check their phones more often than those who are not Plugged In.
H3: To test the hypothesis of the relationship between Plugged In and mindfulness, a correlation was computed with the Plugged In Scale and the MAAS. Results indicated a significant negative correlation (r = -.219, p < .05), indicating that individuals who are more Plugged In are lower in mindfulness, thus supporting the hypothesis. Table 3 displays the correlation findings.
Introduction
Many individuals feel the need to be connected to their social world through their smartphones and other devices. We are busy working on one task at hand and we become interrupted by a notification on our smartphones. This distraction forces us to “pause” the present moment to instead enter the virtual world on our smartphones. The smartphone is capable of becoming an extension of ourselves, such that when we are separated from it, we experience a lessening of the ‘self’ and a negative psychological state. Being connected to everything and everyone via smartphones is changing the way we live (Ericsson, 2012). Do addiction, dependence, obsessive passion and technostress relate the frequent, and high-intensity use of our smartphones? Additionally, does this frequent, high-intensity use of smartphones increase the amount of stress we feel?
The current studies propose a new construct, “Plugged In” to investigate and understand the addictive, dependent, obsessive passion and technostress phenomena and related to smartphone use. Thus, Plugged In individuals are proposed to exhibit characteristics of dependency, addiction, obsessive passion and technostress towards the use of their smartphone. Plugged In individuals are constantly involved with their smartphone and attending to smartphone notifications is a priority. The constant interruption (via smartphone notification) shifts an individual’s attention out of the present context to ‘plug in’ to the virtual context of the smartphone.
Addiction is an individual’s unconscious motivation and drive to perform a behavior because the behavior produces a highly positive, yet impermanent, emotional response that is associated with feelings of pleasure and stimulation. Smartphone addiction is the affective component of Plugged In The extensive use of smartphones can lead to addiction. Individuals who experience smartphone addiction often feel uncomfortable or irritated when their smartphone is not accessible (Lepp, Barkley & Karpinski, 2014).
Dependency can be described as the reliance on repeatedly performing a behavior as many times as needed in order to achieve a desired state of fulfillment and satisfaction. Smartphone dependency is the behavioral component of Plugged In. Smartphone dependency relates to an uncontrolled, inappropriate or excessive use of the smartphone (Cholez, 2010).
Obsessive passion relates to an individual’s constant conscious thinking and monitoring of the virtual state of the smartphone. Obsessive passion towards smartphones is the cognitive component of Plugged In. Obsessive passion results in a controlled internalization of an object into a person’s identity, in which they are controlled by said object and if disturbed from the object, they may become anxious or unable to concentrate (Wang & Chu, 2007).
Technostress is a modern disease of adaptation caused by an inability to cope with new technologies in a healthy manner and the phenomenon of experiencing stress due to information overload (Lee, Chang, Lin & Cheng, 2014). Technostress describes the technological component of Plugged In.
Stress is described as the perceived internalized pressure to constantly be connected to everything and everyone. This perceived pressure makes the individual feel a sense of mental chaos and sense of obligation to meet the urgent demands of the world. Recurring stress can be debilitating and overwhelming and can affect our physical and psychological well-being (APA, 2014). With constant smartphone use, the buzz of a new message feels like the call of a siren to many, and although an person may initially intend to only check new messages, in many cases they then drift into an interactive process of firing off quick answers the new issues raised (Krishnan, Kurtzberg & Naquin, 2014).
Hypotheses
H1: It is hypothesized that Plugged In individuals will show addiction, dependence, obsessive passion and technostress from high-intensity smartphone use.
H2: It is hypothesized that Plugged In individuals will experience greater stress than individuals who are not Plugged In.
H3: It is hypothesized that there will be a negative relationship between Plugged In and mindfulness.
Conclusion
The results from the pilot studies provided validation of the new construct Plugged In. Results from EFA in the first pilot study supported the first hypothesis that Plugged In individuals are addicted, dependent, have obsessive passion and experience technostress from the use of smartphones. The Plugged In construct was further validated by revealing that there is a significant relationship between the amount of self-report hours per day individuals spent on their smartphones and being Plugged In. Additionally, in the first pilot study, an EFA revealed validation of a new 34-item measure known as the Plugged In Scale (PIS) that reliably captures this construct. By assessing the relationship between Plugged In and stress, the second hypothesis was also supported meaning that individuals who are more Plugged In have higher levels of stress.
In the second pilot study, convergent and discriminate validity further confirmed the reliability of a new measure known as the Plugged In Scale (PIS). In the second pilot study, EFA revealed a final 20-item measure of the PIS, by reducing and refining the PIS. Plugged In was validated by assessing the relationship between the amount of self-reported times participants “checked” their phones per day and being Plugged In. The second pilot study also sought to investigate future stress reduction interventions by comparing being Plugged In with mindfulness. Results support the hypothesis from the second pilot study and showed that individuals who are more Plugged In are lower in mindfulness.
As Plugged In individuals who are high-intensity smartphone users exhibit the characteristics of addiction, dependence, obsessive passion and technostress from the use of smartphones and experience more stress, the second pilot study revealed possibility for a future mindfulness intervention to reduce both the effects of stress from being Plugged In and the potential to reduce an individual’s level of being Plugged In. It is important now to investigate the behavioral components of being Plugged In and to develop and design a stress reduction intervention through a mindfulness practice.
References Upon Request