When the phone's away, people use their computer to play: distance to the smartphone reduces device usage but not overall distraction and task fragmentation during work

Heitmayer, Maxi ORCID: 0000-0001-9066-9258 (2025) When the phone's away, people use their computer to play: distance to the smartphone reduces device usage but not overall distraction and task fragmentation during work. Frontiers in Computer Science, 7. ISSN 2624-9898 (In Press)

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Abstract

The smartphone helps workers balance the demands of their professional and personal lives but can also be a distraction, affecting productivity, wellbeing, and work-life balance. Drawing from insights on the impact of physical environments on object engagement, this study examines how the distance between the smartphone and the user influences interactions in work contexts. Participants (N=22) engaged in two 5h knowledge work sessions on the computer, with the smartphone placed outside their immediate reach during one session. Results show that limited smartphone accessibility led to reduced smartphone use, but participants shifted non-work activities to the computer and the time they spent on work and leisure activities overall remained unchanged. These findings suggest that discussions on smartphone disruptiveness in work contexts should consider the specific activities performed, challenging narratives of 'smartphone addiction' and 'smartphone overuse' as the cause of increased disruptions and lowered work productivity.

Item Type:	Article
Additional Information:	© 2025 The Author
Divisions:	Psychological and Behavioural Science
Subjects:	B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > BF Psychology Q Science > QA Mathematics > QA75 Electronic computers. Computer science H Social Sciences > HD Industries. Land use. Labor
Date Deposited:	05 Feb 2025 17:18
Last Modified:	21 Feb 2025 10:57
URI:	http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/127186

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