16. Nomophobia
Nomophobia is the fear of losing your mobile phone or losing service. You would think this one only affects 16-year-old girls, but it’s a lot more widespread than that. According to Psychology Today, 66 percent of adults suffer from it.
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People have even reported anxiety over a dead battery or loosing credit.
Nomophobia is short for “No More Phone.” It was coined by the UK research firm YouGov in 2010.
Their study showed the average adolescent would rather lose a pinky than loose a phone. Of course, this could be linked to young peoples’ tendency to exaggerate (I wouldn’t go testing this by walking onto a college campus with a machete though).
The study also showed 65 percent of people sleep with or next to their phones, 34 percent answer their phones during sex, and one in five would rather go for a week without shoes than a week without their phones.
Nonetheless, many psychologists simply define nomophobia as society adapting to new technology, rather than an actual phobia or addiction that can interfere with everyday life.
Can you put down your phone for a day? Please don’t if you’re reading this on a smart phone!
en.wikipedia.org
