The Relationship Between Nomophobia, Emotional Intelligence, Interpersonal Problem-Solving, Perceived Stress, and Self-esteem Among Undergraduate Students

Abstract

Nomophobia is derived from “no mobile phobia”; it is defined as the fear of being away from the possibility of communication by mobile phone. Since mobile phones are used actively in many fields, from communication to social media, from the stock market to e-commerce, users can practically follow developments in their areas of interest with their mobile phones. This situation reveals the need for users to keep their phones with them all the time and can trigger the development of nomophobia feelings. This fear can become increasingly common among mobile phone users today and may require clinical interventions due to its consequences. Researchers state that the investigation of factors that cause nomophobia can inform subsequent interventions and guidance studies to overcome this fear. Various studies have been carried out to determine the causes of nomophobia. In these studies, the importance of individual psycho-social factors is revealed. However, it is emphasized that dimensions related to psycho-social factors need to be explored. One of them is the relationship of nomophobia with emotional intelligence, interpersonal problem-solving, perceived stress, and self-esteem. This study investigated the structural relationships between university students’ nomophobia and emotional intelligence, interpersonal problem-solving, perceived stress, and self-esteem. The research was carried out on 543 university students. Fifty-seven percent of the students participating in the study were female, and 43% were male. Path analysis was performed in the analysis of the data. The results of the research reveal that as the interpersonal problem-solving skills of university students improve, nomophobia decreases. Depending on the development of emotional intelligence, students’ interpersonal problem-solving skills increase. In addition, the development of emotional intelligence reduces the level of perceived stress. In line with the findings obtained from the research, various suggestions were made for the researchers. © 2023 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.