A dyadic multimethod study of "partner phubbing", smartphone conflict, and relationship quality in opposite-sex couples from Belgium

Abstract

Existing research indicates that 'partner phubbing' is associated with heightened conflict and lower relationship satisfaction. However, previous studies have relied on cross-sectional designs involving subjective self-reports of only one partner. In this study, the main hypothesis entailed that the link between partner phubbing and relationship quality will be mediated by conflict over smartphone use. We utilized experience sampling (ESM) with objective smartphone logging measures collected over 14 days from 35 mixed-gender intimate dyads from Belgium (N = 70). An Actor-Partner Interdependence Model revealed that perceived relationship quality was negatively predicted by partner's smartphone use in husbands only, but there were no indirect effects via smartphone conflict. We reported a low occurrence of smartphone frustration and conflict in couples. An outstanding dyad analysis revealed some incongruencies between partner's smartphone use and its perception within couples. The design allowed us to distinguish between phone use frequency and screen time, which facilitated a nuanced understanding of smartphone use impact, and gender differences, to some extent refuting the previous literature. The findings prompt us to debate whether co-present smartphone use ought to be associated with negative outcomes exclusively, a rare notion to be explored in future research.