Texting While Listening: Polychronicity and Increased Phubbing Others

Polychronicity is the preference in performing multiple tasks at a given time (e.g. texting while listening). Polychronicity is a belief that drives a behavioral practice of multitasking. Unfortunately, phone use while socializing with others can undermine relationships. Conservation of resource (COR) theory explains individuals multitask to accumulate resources for later use. While upfront effort may be greater, in the long-run time, effort, and social resources are saved. Path analysis (N = 809) showed polychronicity is associated to increased phubbing others (i.e. phone snubbing). Polychronicity is associated to decreased personal wellbeing (mediator). Personal wellbeing is associated to decreased phubbing others. Counterintuitively, high technological adaptivity (moderator) and polychronicity are associated to increased personal wellbeing. Despite common use of mobile devices in the digital age that can negatively impact in-person interactions, a polychronic individual can improve personal wellbeing with a career-oriented use of technology. This can reduce the desire to use technology in the presence of others because of satisfactory grounding in their career, health, relationships, and safety needs. Interactions with people are a time when these individuals choose not to multitask with digital devices.