It can’t be any more simple than that. In fact, even Merriam-Webster<\/a>\u00a0writes about it:<\/p>\n In May 2012, Australia’s\u00a0Macquarie Dictionary\u00a0and the McCann advertising agency assembled a group of language experts to\u00a0name a phenomenon<\/a>\u00a0common in the era of the smartphone. They dubbed the phenomenon\u00a0phubbing, and defined it as “the act of snubbing someone in a social setting by looking at your phone instead of paying attention.”<\/em><\/p>\n Here’s an example:<\/p>\n You’re out to dinner with a friend. The conversation winds down. They pick up their phone and begin scrolling through Instagram. You’re sitting there, just staring at them, as they are no longer present at the table with you. You’ve been phubbed.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n Or, this:<\/p>\n You’re enjoying an afternoon together with your spouse. Mid conversation, your spouse picks up their phone to answer a text message. You’ve been phubbed.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n Ouch. Snubbed in favor of a phone. But, this has become so commonplace it doesn’t really sting anymore. In fact, we may not even notice it’s happening or that we’re doing it to someone else.<\/p>\n In a 2016 study titled, My life has become a major distraction from my cell phone<\/a>, Meredith David and James Roberts suggest that “even the mere presence of cell phones has been found to undermine perceived closeness, connection, and conversation quality<\/em>.”<\/p>\n Julie Hart from\u00a0The Hart Centre<\/a>\u00a0states, “According to studies in US and UK, on average we check our phones every four to six minutes of our waking hours \u2026 that\u2019s over 150 times a day.<\/em>” When it comes to social media she says, “You can be so seduced by the neurochemical hit of dopamine it provides, of constant connection at a safe distance \u2026 who else wants to reach me, the number of likes I\u2019ve got, another funny story to read, the excitement of something new \u2026 that it can easily become what you do with your spare time.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n In fact, there’s even a book about it:\u00a0Alone Together<\/a> by Sherry Turkle compiles research about \u201cwhy we expect more from technology and less from each other.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n To understand the multiple layers of phubbing, check out this video:<\/p>\nAccording to the NY Post<\/a>, you are a phubber if\u2026<\/h3>\n
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The impact of phubbing on our lives, however, can make a lasting impression on our relationships.<\/h4>\n