Association Between Personality Traits/Dimensions and Fear of No Mobile Phone Connectivity (nomophobia): Results of a Lebanese National Study

Abstract

Objective: To study nomophobia in a large sample of Lebanese adults and its relationship with personality traits and other sociodemographic factors that may contribute to the diagnosis such as sex, parental status, and smoking.

Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted between January and July 2019. A total of 2,260 residents randomly selected from districts in Lebanon completed a questionnaire about sociodemographic characteristic and smoking. Respondents also completed the Nomophobia Questionnaire, Personality Inventory for DSM-5, and NEO Five-Factor Inventory.

Results: The results of a linear regression, taking the nomophobia score as the dependent variable, showed that higher neuroticism (B = 0.648), number of waterpipes smoked per week (B = 0.749), and disinhibition (B = 0.706) were significantly associated with higher nomophobia, whereas more agreeableness (B = -0.535) and detachment (B = -0.594) were significantly associated with lower nomophobia.

Conclusions: This study assessed the variation of inherent personality traits using 2 validated personality questionnaires and their association with nomophobia. As digital use becomes more prevalent within personal and professional aspects of life, nomophobia might become an anxiety risk. Future studies should focus on preventive and treatment measures in the form of awareness campaigns.