LINKING PSYCHOLOGICAL ATTRIBUTES TO ADDICTION AND IMPROPER USE OF THE MOBILE PHONE AMONG ADOLESCENTS IN HONG KONG

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to (1) identify addiction symptoms that are uniquely associated with mobile phone use among adolescents in Hong Kong; (2) examine how demographics and psychological attributes (such as leisure boredom, sensation seeking, and self‐esteem) of individuals are related to the addiction symptoms; and (3) explore how these attributes, mobile phone addiction symptoms, and social capital can predict improper use of the mobile phone. Data were gathered from a probability sample of 402 teenagers and young adults aged 14–20 in Hong Kong. Exploratory factor analysis identified four addiction symptoms: “losing control and receiving complaints,” “anxiety and craving,” “withdrawal/escape,” and “productivity loss.” Results show that the higher one scored on leisure boredom and sensation seeking, the higher the likelihood one was addicted. Conversely, subjects who scored high on self‐esteem demonstrated less of such tendency. As hypothesized, subjects who scored low on self‐esteem but high on sensation seeking reported the most improper use of the mobile phone (especially in snapping pictures stealthily when nobody notices).

Keywords:

• addiction
• adolescents
• Hong Kong
• leisure boredom
• mobile phone
• problem use
• self‐esteem
• sensation seeking
• social capital

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

The work described in this paper was fully supported by a grant from the Faculty of Social Science of The Chinese University of Hong Kong (Project no. CUHK 2020803).

Notes

1. As of May 2007, the statistics for the mobile phone subscribers in Hong Kong is 9,584,557 units in a city with population of 6.9 million. Source: Office of Telecommunications Authority in Hong Kong.

2. In Hong Kong, obtaining a mobile phone list is difficult if not impossible. This is because, on one hand, such information is proprietary to the four or five service providers—they are in fierce competition with one another. On the other hand, they do have the legal responsibilities to protect the privacy of personal information. Selling or allowing customer information to be used for marketing or research purposes without prior consent would be unethical.

3. The phenomenon of “happy slapping” is not typical in Hong Kong although more than 36 percent of the respondents did admit that they had slapped pictures of others without anyone noticing. However, only 2.5 percent admitted often or very often for such behavior.