Motivation and emotion/Book/2023/Mobile phone use motivation

Mobile phone use motivation:
What are the motivations for mobile phone use?

Multimedia presentation (3 min)

Overview

Figure 2. Uses and gratification theory was pioneered by Elihu Katz and his colleagues

Imagine the early 1990s. No-one is on their phone because the first touchscreen phone has just been invented and is not really useful. In the early 2000s the form of communication is making some headway, but models from that era are now nostalgia inducing and antiquated, see Figure 1. 30 years after the first touch screen, over 90% of people on earth use mobile phones everyday. So, what motivates us to use our phones, and why do we use them so much?

Figure 1. Antiquated mobile phones

Looking back through what we know about the history of humans, it is clear we have always been social creatures. Harari et al. (2015) and Shlain (2003) show this common thread. Findings suggest our predecessors always lived in small bands and isolation often lead to death. Wang et al. (2022) found that extraversion lead to higher social network size, so our base needs vary as we are individuals. Introverts often still have social networks as we all have a need to communicate and belong. Phones can facilitate this and fulfill that need, giving us motivation to interact through them.

Some of our motivations for mobile phone use can be viewed through the lens of theory. The uses and gratifications theory (UGT) is a way of looking at how people use media (like TV, movies, or the internet) for their own purposes and satisfaction. Primary work was done by Elihu Katz and colleagues circa 1973 (see Figure 2). Instead of thinking that the media is limited by what people expect from it, this approach says that people actually challenge media producers to provide a wider variety of content and meet different needs. UGT suggests that audiences push media creators to come up with more diverse and fulfilling content to meet all the different things people are looking for when they consume media. It's like saying that audiences have a say in shaping what kind of content gets made because they have different desires and roles they want media to fulfill (Katz et al., 1973b, p. 521).

The theory has five key principles in the framework: cognitive needs, affective needs, personal integrative needs, social integrative needs and, tension free needs (West & Turner, 2010). We will expand on this throughout the chapter.

We are also affected physiologically and psychologically by phone use. Understanding how phone use impacts us in these ways and through the lens of theory can help us make informed decisions about their use.

Focus questions: What is going on inside us when we interact with our phones? What is the psychological motivation to use our phones? What is the neurological motivation of our phones? what could motivate us to use our phones less?

The psychological motivations of phone use

The psychological motivations driving phone use are numerous and ingrained in ‘modern behavior’. One key factor is the urge for social connection. Phones serve as access to social networks, enabling instant communication and maintaining relationships. The desire for interaction, validation, and a sense of belonging drives people to check messages, scroll social media, and participate in virtual communities. This was shown in a paper by Li et al. (2021) that found adolescents used phones more while isolated during COVID than pre-COVID, highlighting their motivation for being socially connected.

Fig. 3 Dopamine, Norepinephrine, Serotonin

Additionally, information-seeking is a common motivation. Phones provide immediate access to the internet of information, satisfying curiosity, aiding decision making, and fostering self actualisation. This information driven motivation is apparent when individuals search for news updates, educational content, or general trivia. Weiler (2005) suggests that younger generations are more concerned with obtaining any answer than its accuracy. This fulfills a psychological need for growth and could also be viewed as meeting a cognitive need.

Phones also fulfill the need for entertainment and escape, or tension free needs. With apps, games, and multimedia platforms, phones offer an instant escape from routine, stress, and boredom. This motivation taps into the human desire for pleasure and emotional regulation. The desire to feel good is a psychological need for esteem needs. Many studies show this behaviour can lead to addiction, problematic phone use, and varied health outcomes (Shoukat, 2019).

Another psychological driver is the fear of missing out (FOMO). The constant stream of updates and notifications can create anxiety about being out of the loop, compelling individuals to stay glued to their screens to stay informed and connected. This social threat and anxiety leads to a response of increased cortisol (Dickerson & Kemeny, 2004). Possibly to our detriment, this fills a psychological need for relatedness.

Furthermore, phones allow self-expression, which is another higher order psychological need for self actualisation. Sharing thoughts, images, and experiences allows individuals to present themselves to the world in a way that garners attention and affirmation, boosting self-esteem needs and identity formation. The feedback loop of posting and receiving interactions has a positive psychological effect on our mood. This could be described as a personal integrative need.

The novelty seeking aspect of human psychology is also engaged by phones. The ever-evolving features, apps, and trends keep users engaged and curious, tapping into the human inclination for exploration and variety. Personal productivity and organisation play a role as well. We use phones to manage tasks, set reminders, and maintain schedules, aligning with the psychological desire for efficiency and control over one's life. Lack of control can have negative psychological impacts.

In summary, the psychological motivations behind phone use encompass social connection, information-seeking, entertainment, FOMO, self-expression, novelty-seeking, productivity, and identity formation

The neurological motivations of phone use

The neurological motivations driving phone use are intricately woven into the interplay of hormones, neurotransmitters, and specific brain regions, offering a deeper understanding of our digital behaviors (see Figure 3).

Our need for social connection is mediated by oxytocin, often dubbed the "love hormone" Oxytocin is produced in the hypothalamus and released by the pituitary gland (Reeve, 2018, p. 90), promoting feelings of calmness, trust, and social affiliation. When individuals engage in phone-mediated interactions, such as texting or video calls, oxytocin release is stimulated, motivating the desire for continued connection.

The information-seeking motivation is linked to the brain's reward system, primarily governed by dopamine. When we discover new or interesting information, dopamine is released from the ventral tegmental area into areas like the striatum nucleus accumbens (Reeve, 2018, p. 51), reinforcing the behavior of seeking out information. This reaction underlies the continued motivation to scroll through news, click on links, and explore online content.

Phones cater to the need for entertainment and escape through the release of endorphins. Engaging with entertaining apps, videos, or games triggers endorphin release, which activates the brain's pleasure centres, including the prefrontal cortex and the limbic system. These endorphins are the brain's endogenous opiates and relieve sadness (Reeve, 2018, p. 317). This creates a sense of enjoyment, relaxation, and stress relief, motivating continued phone use for fun.

The fear of missing out (FOMO) draws on the hormone cortisol, which is associated with the body's stress response. The fear of missing important updates triggers anxiety and cortisol release from the adrenal glands, driving us to frequently check our phones and alleviate the perceived stress of being disconnected. Continuous high cortisol levels have negative health impacts, including higher cardiovascular disease risk (Manenschijn et al. 2013). Additionally, a literature review found it may increase the risk of cognitive decline and dementia in later life (Ouanes & Popp, 2019). This is unlikely to motivate us to use our phone less as we still crave validation and dopamine now.

The desire for self-expression and validation is closely tied to serotonin, a neurotransmitter known for its role in mood regulation and social interactions. Lack of serotonin can lead to negative health outcomes (Reeve, 2018, p. 58). Positive interactions, likes, and comments received on social media platforms stimulate serotonin release, leading to enhanced self-esteem and a positive emotional state. This reinforces the behavior of sharing and seeking affirmation on digital platforms and motivates more phone use as we crave easy dopamine.

UGT and mobile phone use motivation

The UGT changed the traditional perspective on the relationship between media and its users. Unlike the passive consumers assumed by other media theories, UGT recognises individuals as active users with specific intentions and purposes when engaging with media (Katz et al., 1973b).

UGT emphasises that media consumption has goals and we are motivated to fulfill various needs. These needs encompass cognitive aspirations, such as acquiring knowledge or information; affective desires, which include emotional experiences; personal integrative needs, tied to self-esteem and identity; social integrative needs, involving interactions with friends and family; and tension-free needs, which help us relax and unwind.

UGT acknowledges that media competes with alternative sources to meet these diverse needs. Users are not just passive, we are self-aware and capable of selecting media that aligns with our needs. Each media experience is unique, as it fulfills different needs for different individuals.

In today's digital age, media is more pronounced than ever with algorithms guiding content recommendations. UGT has limitations in this regard and it may be unclear if we are now passive or making choices. UGT underscores the active role of users in selecting and engaging with media to gratify various needs, making the relationship between media and users more dynamic and interactive than previously assumed.

UGT recognises that individuals use their phones to fulfill multiple needs simultaneously. For example, someone might use their phone to stay informed about current events (information need) while also chatting with friends (social need) and listening to music (entertainment need) all at once.

Table 1. Phone use motivation. (West & Turner, 2010)

Phone use motivation (Table 1)

Motivation for phone use	Description
Cognitive needs	Many people use their phones to access information and knowledge because they are a convenient source to meet that need. anything from checking news to reading educational content.
Social integrative needs	Phones serve as a primary tool for communication. People use messaging apps, social media platforms, and phone calls to connect with friends, family, and colleagues. This fulfills their social and interpersonal needs, helping them stay connected and maintain relationships
Personal integrative needs	Social media and personalisation features on phones motivate individuals to present themselves and build their identities. creating an online presence fulfills the need for self-presentation and identity expression meeting self esteem needs.
Affective needs	we seek emotional gratification from media content. This can include experiencing emotions such as happiness, excitement, laughter, fear, sadness, or even catharsis.
Tension release needs	Similar to entertainment needs, some individuals use their phones as a means of distraction or escape from daily stressors. Scrolling through social media, playing mobile games, and watching live streams can provide temporary relaxation

The ability of our mobile phones to satisfy many of the needs listed above has created numerous new problems. All our needs being met and the constant rewards from our dopaminergic systems can motivate us to over use our phones. Motives including mood regulation, self identity, pass time, social, and enhancement were all found to be positively associated with problematic phone use in a recent study (Sullivan & George., 2023). While over use may be problematic, it is hard to place blame on the consumer as phones are so versatile. Media producers have met the UGT challenge of providing a wide variety of content to meet the needs of the masses. This is exacerbated by the fact that anyone can create media. Sharing and creating content has various motivations and meets several needs (see Table 1). Livestreaming services like Youtube and Twitch.tv provide social interaction, a sense of community, meeting new people, entertainment, information seeking, and external support. Interestingly, smaller audiences are leveraged for social integrative needs while larger channel viewers had various motivations for viewing like a sense of community (Hilvert-Bruce et al., 2018). Communities created by livestreaming platforms and podcasting can create parasocial relationships, these seemingly one way relationships were found to have positive informational influence leading to viewers being easily influenced by that person (Su et al., 2021). So, we are motivated to use our phones to meet many social needs but we can then be influenced and marketed to.

Dependence on phones leads to large investment from advertisers

Phone use does not necessarily meet our existence needs. However, it facilitates them. You can use a phone to find a place to live and contact emergency services. Phones can be used to meet and facilitate social integrative needs. We can check in on family and friends and partake in communities of interest. Phones can also be used to meet and facilitate cognitive needs. We can consume educational content and even educational courses with our phones. However, with such dependence comes opportunity for advertisers to market to phone users at all times. With advertisements in applications, targeted ads, and mobile shopping applications we are profitable sources of income. The interactive Advertising Bureau's (IAB) Online advertising expenditure report found that Australia spent $3.45 billion in online advertising in the 2022 March quarter. It is obviously a profitable market reinforcing our behaviour with small rewards and supported by market research to increase profits.

Push notifications motivate us to check our phones and give us the reward of dopamine. Stothart et al. (2015) determined that phone notifications impair performance whilst completing attention demanding tasks, despite participants knowing there were distracting conditions. Elhai et al. (2021) found that feelings of boredom led to notifications drawing one's attention away from tasks; ultimately decreasing productivity. The notification motivates us to check our phone and we become anxious and release cortisol when we do not check notifications. This motivates us. However, if we are expecting a positive reward like a message from a loved one and get a push notification we perceive as a negative reward it should lead to behaviour change. Our phones are so ingrained in our lives that we forgive that negative reward that usually prompts changes to behaviour.

What does this mean for me? Phones can help us meet many of our needs. However, our reliance on them makes them avenues for advertisers. Australia spends billions on online and mobile advertising. Push notifications that annoy us do not seem to change our behaviour as expected! We feel anxious when we do not check our notifications, even if it could be an annoying push notification from an app or advertiser! When we participate in online communities through media like Twitch.tv and Youtube, advertisers also target us there and through influencers, as we are more likely to purchase products people we have parasocial relationships with recommend.

Motivation for using our phone less - A case study on cobalt in lithium ion batteries

Figure 4. Similar mining conditions to what the Congolese face today to bring us cobalt

Smartphones and laptops rely on cobalt oxide lithium batteries to power their hardware. Cobalt plays a crucial role in these batteries, preventing overheating and degradation, which enhances safety, as we keep our phones close and usually on 24/7. By managing cathode temperatures, cobalt safeguards against potential fire risks, thereby extending the lifespan of the batteries. Although cathodes in smart devices are not combustible, they facilitate the flow of current, serving as essential electrodes for reduction reactions that sustain our batteries. On the other hand lithium is flammable and breakdowns of the cathodes can lead to issues. (Understanding Lithium-Ion Batteries: The Role of Cobalt Oxide and Manganese, 2020).

Cobalt's significance in phone manufacturing is large yet not mainstream conversation. However, the hidden cost prompts us to reconsider cobalt's use and encourages less phone usage. In the Congo, a grim story unfolds: Chinese multinational mining corporations exploit slave labour for manual cobalt extraction (Fig. 4). Congolese workers get wages of less than a few dollars a day, inhale toxic fumes from cobalt extraction, and endure harsh conditions trying to meet our technological demands. Some mothers carry infants on their backs, and children are used as part of this workforce.

This narrative highlights a disturbing aspect of our reliance on unethical labour to fuel our technological progress. Siddharth Kara's "Cobalt Red: How the Blood of the Congo Powers Our Lives" delves into this issue, providing firsthand insights and findings. This case study is not a traditional peer-reviewed paper due to the dangerous conditions and ethical issues that make scientific investigation in this area life threatening. This sobering reality may tinge our motivation to use smartphones with a sense of guilt. Rather than hastily purchasing the latest smartphone releases, adopting a more conscientious approach becomes important. One strategy could be to extend the use period of our existing phones, curbing the demand for newer models and, consequently, the need for cobalt to construct them. Additionally, cobalt is reclaimable and reusable, underscoring the importance of recycling old phones and batteries to minimize our environmental impact and dependence on ethically compromised resources. The cognitive dissonance we feel with cobalt powering our devices raises vital ethical and environmental concerns. Recognising the true cost of this process calls for a collective commitment to sustainable practices that respect human rights and preserve the planet.

Before you buy a new phone, recycle your old one! Habibi et al. (2020) suggest that many ways of recycling e-waste are available. biohydrometallurgy shows promise as an environmentally friendly method for recovering precious metals from E-waste, offering advantages like lower operational costs and reduced environmental impact compared to other treatment methods. Further research in this field could lead to more eco-friendly E-waste processing in the future. This could reduce extrinsic demotivation and guilt about our phone use behaviour.

We pick up our phones around 52 times a day!

Approximately how many people use smartphones globally?

	92%
	56%
	34%

Conclusion

The widespread use and motivation to use mobile phones can be attributed to the interplay of psychological and neurological mechanisms. Our motivation is driven by our need for social connection and the many other services phones provide. From a neurological standpoint, our brain chemistry reinforces these behaviors, with oxytocin, dopamine, and endorphins playing roles in reinforcing our motivation to use phones.

The UGT highlighted our active roles in selecting and engaging with media to fulfill cognitive, affective, personal integrative, social integrative, and tension-free needs.

Ethical concerns related to mobile device production and recycling should inform us to think about conscious phone usage and sustainable choices, while understanding we are probably overusing phones because of all the needs they meet for us with low effort.

In essence, comprehending the motivations behind our persistent phone use is the first step towards finding a more balanced and conscious relationship with them, allowing us to gain benefits while mitigating potential drawbacks.

We now know that we are motivated to use our phones because they meet so many needs. However, this over use may be problematic, but being aware can help us change use behaviours.

See also

• Cognitive dissonance and motivation (Book chapter, 2021)
• Mobile phone addiction (Book chapter, 2016)
• Uses and gratification theory (book 2020)

References

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Elhai, J., Rozgonjuk, D., Alghraibeh, A. M., & Yang, H. (2021). Disrupted Daily Activities From Interruptive Smartphone Notifications: Relations With Depression and Anxiety Severity and the Mediating Role of Boredom Proneness. Social Science Computer Review, 39(1), 20–37. https://doi.org/10.1177/0894439319858008

Eide, T., Aarestad, S. H., Andreassen, C. S., Bilder, R. M., & Pallesen, S. (2018). Smartphone Restriction and Its Effect on Subjective Withdrawal Related Scores. Frontiers in Psychology, 9, 1444–1444. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.01444

Habibi,A., Shamshiri Kourdestani, S., & Hadadi, M. (2020). Biohydrometallurgy as an environmentally friendly approach in metals recovery from electrical waste: A review. Waste Management & Research, 38(3), 232–244. https://doi.org/10.1177/0734242X19895321

Harari, Y. N., Purcell, J., & Watzman, H. (2015). Sapiens: A brief history of humankind. Harper.

Hilvert-Bruce, Z., Neill, J. T., Sjöblom, M., & Hamari, J. (2018). Social motivations of live-streaming viewer engagement on Twitch. Computers in Human Behavior, 84, 58-67. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2018.02.013

Lopez-Fernandez, O. (2021). Internet and Smartphone Use-Related Addiction Health Problems: Treatment, Education and Research. MDPI - Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute. doi.org/10.3390/books978-3-0365-1275-4.

Kara, S. (2023). Cobalt Red. St Martin’s Press.

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Katz, E., Blumler, J. G., & Gurevitch, M. (1973b). Uses and gratifications research. The public opinion quarterly, 37(4), 509-523. https://doi.org/10.1086/268109

Li, J., Zhan, D., Zhou, Y., & Gao, X. (2021). Loneliness and problematic mobile phone use among adolescents during the COVID-19 pandemic: The roles of escape motivation and self-control. Addictive behaviors, 118, 106857. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addbeh.2021.106857

Manenschijn, L., Schaap, L., Van Schoor, N. M., van der Pas, S., Peeters, G. M. E. E., Lips, P. T. A. M., ... & Van Rossum, E. F. C. (2013). High long-term cortisol levels, measured in scalp hair, are associated with a history of cardiovascular disease. The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, 98(5), 2078-2083. https://doi.org/10.1210/jc.2012-3663

Ouanes, S., & Popp, J. (2019). High cortisol and the risk of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease: a review of the literature. Frontiers in aging neuroscience, 11, 43. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnagi.2019.00043

Reeve, J. (2018). Understanding motivation and emotion. Wiley Custom.

Shlain, L. (2003). Sex, time, and power: How women’s sexuality shaped human evolution. Penguin.

Shoukat, S. (2019). Cell phone addiction and psychological and physiological health in adolescents. EXCLI journal, 18, 47. DOI: 10.17179/excli2018-2006

Stothart, C., Mitchum, A., & Yehnert, C. (2015). The Attentional Cost of Receiving a Cell Phone Notification. Journal of Experimental Psychology. Human Perception and Performance, 41(4), 893–897. https://doi.org/10.1037/xhp0000100.

Sullivan, B. M., & George, A. (2023). The association of motives with problematic smartphone use: A systematic review. Cyberpsychology, 17(1), 2. https://doi.org/10.5817/CP2023-1-2

Wang, X., Zhen, Z., Xu, S., Li, J., Song, Y., & Liu, J. (2022). Behavioral and neural correlates of social network size: The unique and common contributions of face recognition and extraversion. Journal of Personality, 90(2), 294–305. https://doi.org/10.1111/jopy.12666.

West, R. L., & Turner, L. H. (2010). Uses and gratifications theory. Introducing communication theory: Analysis and application, 392-98.

Yang, C. L., Hwang, M., & Chen, Y. C. (2011). An empirical study of the existence, relatedness and growth (ERG) theory in consumer's selection of mobile value-added services. African Journal of Business Management, 5(19), 7885.

External links

• Attention or distraction? The impact of mobile phone on users' psychological well-being (Frontiers)
• Biohydrometallurgy
• What happens to your brain when you mindlessly scroll? (asapSCIENCE, Youtube)
• How to break up with your phone - book
• How do lithium ion batteries work? cobalt oxide - manganese - anode - cathode. YouTube.