Although nomophobia does not appear in the current Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5), it has been proposed as a "specific phobia," based on definitions given in the DSM-IV.[5][dubious ] According to Bianchi and Philips (2005) psychological factors are involved in the overuse of a mobile phone.[6] These could include low self-esteem (when individuals looking for reassurance use the mobile phone in inappropriate ways) and extroverted personality (when naturally social individuals use the mobile phone to excess). It is also highly possible that nomophobic symptoms may be caused by other underlying and preexisting mental disorders, with likely candidates including social phobia or social anxiety disorder, social anxiety,[7] and panic disorder.[8]
The term, an abbreviation for "no-mobile-phone phobia,"[9] was coined during a 2008 study by the UK Post Office who commissioned YouGov, a UK-based research organization, to evaluate anxieties suffered by mobile phone users. The study found that nearly 53% of mobile phone users in Britain tend to be anxious when they "lose their mobile phone, run out of battery or credit, or have no network coverage". The study, sampled 2,163 people, found that about 58% of men and 47% of women suffer from the phobia, and an additional 9% feel stressed when their mobile phones are off. 55% of those surveyed cited keeping in touch with friends or family as the main reason that they got anxious when they could not use their mobile phones.[1][10] The study compared stress levels induced by the average case of nomophobia to be on-par with those of "wedding day jitters" and trips to the dentist.[11]
More than one in two nomophobes never switch off their mobile phones.[12] The study and subsequent coverage of the phobia resulted in two editorial columns authored by individuals who minimized their mobile phone use or chose not to own one at all. These authors appeared to treat the condition with light undertones of mockery, or outright disbelief and amusement.[13][14]
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