Parental Phubbing and its Effects on Adolescents: A Critical Analysis

Abstract

Parental phubbing is the act of parents using smartphones while neglecting their children. Previous studies consistently find that higher parental phubbing is linked to an increase in problem behaviors among adolescents- both internal (anxiety, depression, lower self-esteem) and external (aggression, addiction, conduct issues), and leads to reduced self-concept and social-emotional competence. Therefore, the present study focused on the impact of parental phubbing on adolescents’ wellbeing. Researcher used both theoretical and empirical evidences to examine the study. The findings reveal that parental phubbing is an emerging threat in our technologically advanced society affecting the adolescents and is expressed as certain psychological problems, some of it happen within one self, whereas some other problems are outwardly expressed.