On the Hermeneutics of Screen Time: A Qualitative Case Study of Phubbing

TY - JOUR

T1 - On the Hermeneutics of Screen Time

T2 - A Qualitative Case Study of Phubbing

AU - Aagaard, Jesper

AU - Steninge, Emma

AU - Zhang, Yibin

PY - 2023/12

Y1 - 2023/12

N2 - Screen time has become a hot button issue in psychology with researchers fiercely debating its mental effects. If we want to understand the psychological dynamics of technology use, however, a numerical conceptualization of screen time will lead us to gloss over crucial distinctions. To make this point, the present article takes a hermeneutic approach to a negative form of screen time known as ‘phubbing’, which is the practice of snubbing conversational partners in favor of one’s phone. Using interview data, it is demonstrated that whether or not phone use amounts to phubbing, that is, whether or not it tips over and becomes harmful, depends on a host of contextual factors like relation (who), content (what), purpose (why), timing (when), and communication (how). These findings demonstrate that not all screen time is created equal: What is harmful and inappropriate in one context is benign in another, and vice versa. Simply put, screen time is not a numerical entity whose causal effects we can measure and explain, but a meaningful activity that we must try to understand.

AB - Screen time has become a hot button issue in psychology with researchers fiercely debating its mental effects. If we want to understand the psychological dynamics of technology use, however, a numerical conceptualization of screen time will lead us to gloss over crucial distinctions. To make this point, the present article takes a hermeneutic approach to a negative form of screen time known as ‘phubbing’, which is the practice of snubbing conversational partners in favor of one’s phone. Using interview data, it is demonstrated that whether or not phone use amounts to phubbing, that is, whether or not it tips over and becomes harmful, depends on a host of contextual factors like relation (who), content (what), purpose (why), timing (when), and communication (how). These findings demonstrate that not all screen time is created equal: What is harmful and inappropriate in one context is benign in another, and vice versa. Simply put, screen time is not a numerical entity whose causal effects we can measure and explain, but a meaningful activity that we must try to understand.

KW - Context

KW - Hermeneutics

KW - Meaning

KW - Phubbing

KW - Screen time

U2 - 10.1007/s00146-021-01223-y

DO - 10.1007/s00146-021-01223-y

M3 - Journal article

SN - 0951-5666

SP - 2329

EP - 2337

JO - AI & Society

JF - AI & Society

ER -