Are You A Nomophobe? How To Tell If You're Too Dependent On Your Phone

Take the quiz to find out if you're too attached.

Most Americans check their phones at least once an hour. But for some of us, digital devices are more than tools used to habitually text and tweet; they've become part of our identity, and going somewhere without one can stir up feelings of anxiety. This condition -- the fear of being without your mobile phone -- is called nomophobia.

You've probably experienced some level of emotion when you accidentally leave your phone at home (like the digital version of FOMO), but this is severe for nomaphobes. "IPhones are capable of becoming an extension of our selves such that when separated, we experience a lessening of 'self' and a negative physiological state," explained Russell Clayton, an assistant professor at Florida State University who researched how smartphone separation can link to anxiety.

To measure iPhone codependence, researchers at Iowa State University interviewed nine students about their smartphone experiences, then developed a questionnaire based on these responses that they tested on 301 others. Through their research, they classified four qualities of nomophobia: the fear of losing connectedness, not being able to communicate, not being able to access information and giving up convenience.

We've reconfigured the researchers' questions into the quiz below. Take it to identify the level of your dependency on your mobile device, then consider learning about how to take a digital detox. You deserve it.

CORRECTION: A previous version of this article attributed the questionnaire study to Clayton; it was conducted at Iowa State University.

This post has been updated with Clayton's current university affiliation.

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