Study Finds Users, Not Notifications, Initiate 89% of Smartphone Interactions (psychnewsdaily.com) 33
According to a new study published in the journal Computers In Human Behavior, smartphone users initiate 89% of the interactions, with only 11% initiated by a notification. "This is at odds with previous academic literature and news reports which commonly claim that smartphone notifications are ruining your life, ruining productivity, and so on," reports PsychNewsDaily. From the report: "The perceived disruptiveness of smartphones is not mainly driven by external notifications," the study's authors write, "but by an urge of the user to interact with their phone that seems to occur in an almost automatic manner, just as a smoker would light a cigarette." [...] The researchers explain that many users felt compelled to check their phones even when they had switched off notifications. "Seeing this has made me realize that I don't even remember picking it up," one of the subjects said in a subsequent interview with the study's authors. The study also found that the average duration of a smartphone interaction was 64 seconds. About 50% of the interactions were 23 seconds or less.
The most common activity users engaged in when using their phones was checking WhatsApp, which accounted for 22% of interactions. [...] The second most common interaction, at 17% of the total, was a "lock screen check," which means briefly unlocking the phone to check for new notifications. In third place was interacting with Instagram (16%). Facebook and Facebook messenger together accounted for 13% of the interactions, e-mail for 6%, web browsing 4%, music 3%, Snapchat 2%, and photos 2%. Phone calls -- these devices are phones, after all -- only comprised about 1% of the interactions.
The participants generally considered e-mail notifications the most important. Likewise, they largely considered group chats a "source of distress," and found most group-chat messages unimportant. Smartphone interactions were longer when users were alone versus with others, and were also longer at home versus at work. Likewise, these interactions were shorter when participants received notifications, compared to when they "self-disrupt." This indicates that smartphone use is more purposeful when users receive notifications, and more "distraction-seeking" when they check their phones themselves. The researchers also found that the scrolling features on apps like Instagram and Facebook led to the longest interactions.
The most common activity users engaged in when using their phones was checking WhatsApp, which accounted for 22% of interactions. [...] The second most common interaction, at 17% of the total, was a "lock screen check," which means briefly unlocking the phone to check for new notifications. In third place was interacting with Instagram (16%). Facebook and Facebook messenger together accounted for 13% of the interactions, e-mail for 6%, web browsing 4%, music 3%, Snapchat 2%, and photos 2%. Phone calls -- these devices are phones, after all -- only comprised about 1% of the interactions.
The participants generally considered e-mail notifications the most important. Likewise, they largely considered group chats a "source of distress," and found most group-chat messages unimportant. Smartphone interactions were longer when users were alone versus with others, and were also longer at home versus at work. Likewise, these interactions were shorter when participants received notifications, compared to when they "self-disrupt." This indicates that smartphone use is more purposeful when users receive notifications, and more "distraction-seeking" when they check their phones themselves. The researchers also found that the scrolling features on apps like Instagram and Facebook led to the longest interactions.
Lock screen check (Score:4, Interesting)
Most of my lock screen checks are to see the time, not to check for notifications.
Re: Lock screen check (Score:2)
Who's crazy enough to display the content of his notification on his lock screen anyway?
Just to see what notified me, the notification light is enough.
In Signal you can set the color per contact, and other than that, there's just e-mail, and "meh".
Vibration and sound are set acordingly too.
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Who's crazy enough to display the content of his notification on his lock screen anyway?
"Hey Bill, why is your lock screen showing 'I'm done with the sheep, who's next'"?
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I'll often check to see if there are missed calls or sms message, but I try and remove everything off it. But yeah Im pretty brutal when it comes to notifications. Unless its going to get me fired, or interfere with friday night beers, I dont wanna know.
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Yeah, I'm likewise ruthless when it comes to notifications. Now that work and home are the same, I've even clamped down on work notifications after hours. The important people have my number and can text me if there's an emergency. I'm not about to be thinking about work at 10am on a Saturday just because you were thinking about work at that time.
I'm shocked at how few people actually do this. It's not uncommon for me to see someone's phone just littered with notifications. And looking at the "research", it
Re:Lock screen check (Score:4, Insightful)
With every new android/ios version, real time notifications are less and less reliable. Most of my unprompted interaction is to wake the phone up so that notifications can arrive.
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And that's one thing I don't understand about this research. They somehow differentiate between "notified to check phone" and "checked phone for notification", but to me those are way too similar. It's still a Pavlovian response driven by notifications in both instances. And what happens after a notification is viewed is the same in each case.
As they note, checking for notifications and not finding them is worse, because that means the phone has your attention when it's not even doing anything. This leads c
So Just Having The Smartphone Is An Addiction (Score:3)
Wow. Time to call in the DEA I guess.
Re: So Just Having The Smartphone Is An Addiction (Score:2)
Well, the layman definition of addiction is different from the medical one.
Medically, a psychological addiction is just anything that is a substitute for something else (that you are missing, and often the addiction will prevent you from getting it, too).
So pretty much anything can be addictive and it is way less dramatic than laypeople imagine. Though actually anything *can* become as dramatic too. It's just that most addictions still allow mot of your life to function.
Of course, a true bodily addiction, l
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Well, the layman definition of addiction is different from the medical one.
Medically, a psychological addiction is just anything that is a substitute for something else (that you are missing, and often the addiction will prevent you from getting it, too).
So pretty much anything can be addictive and it is way less dramatic than laypeople imagine. Though actually anything *can* become as dramatic too. It's just that most addictions still allow mot of your life to function.
Of course, a true bodily addiction, like heroin or cigarettes, or, more mildly, or nicotine (not the same as cigarettes, due to the insane additives), is something a bit different. :)
I believe medically speaking only addictions listed in DSM-5 are officially recognized and they are afaik quite specific.
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They are still annoying harassment. (Score:5, Insightful)
All software that creates notifications that aren't opt-in, is malware and should be detected as such by malware software. And legal consequences, via reporting such software, should be an option.
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All software that creates notifications that aren't opt-in, is malware and should be detected as such by malware software. And legal consequences, via reporting such software, should be an option.
I believe installing software with the intent of being notified is quite a large use case, the android way of being able to deny all and then enable them on an app basis and by type is a better solution that already exists (I have no idea how iphones work).
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iPhones have every app ask for permissions to use notifications - it pops up an OS dialog when the app asks the OS to authorize it (while the app is open). Things like Zoom pop up a dialog for the camera on first use of the camera. There is a centralized list (by permission) of all apps that requested that permission, and whether it was denied, granted while the app is open (topmost app) or granted all time (most commonly requested for GPS by maps and such.) These are editable at any time.
For notificatio
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Thanks! Seems to me that's even better than android. OP might want to check the settings of his phone before asking the government to get involved with sorting out his notification gripes.
I always respond to notifications (Score:2)
First thing I do with a new smartphone (Score:3)
I turn off notifications for 98% of my apps. Of course, you have to remember to do it again whenever you install some new app, because that new app will want you to see IT'S "important" notifications - you know, like "OMG 5% off your next sandwich if you buy it with five other sandwiches!!1!"
Also, it's bloody obvious that notifications can ruin productivity even if you don't act on them - the interruption to one's focus happens either way. I imagine these authors actually know this, but they're hoping to save that "bombshell" for a separate study and publication so they can claim extra points towards tenure.
Smartphones (Score:4, Funny)
I remember in the early 2000s when smartphones were just coming out .. fools on slashdot (of all places) would say phones should focus on being a phone .. they didn't need PDA or web browser on a phone .. phones should just focus on being a phone.. that's what laptops were for. Some idiots even said PDA should be a separate device.
Nowadays nobody argues that, I guess people have moved on? Never acknowledging they were wrong, those same idiots and their successors found new things to try to derail ..such as cars getting autonomous and active avoidance features.
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Yeah, I had to switch to a smartphone for work, but just a phone was great. The battery lasted at least a week.
I still think a phone that's a phone would be nice.
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I just switched to a smart phone, because of the covid-19 app apart from that I miss my old phone, lasted 2 weeks easy to answer all I needed. And I really miss my old old Samsung flip phone it lasted 4 weeks, but after 9 years it finally gave up the ghost. Although my new phone is cheap (Nokia 1.3, I didn't buy it and neither should anyone else), it doesn't even answer calls well, hangs for about 20 seconds before I can answer by that time the person calling has hung up.
So there is still a market for a pho
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"Phone calls -- these devices are phones, after all -- only comprised about 1% of the interactions."
They are not phones. And being used less than 1% for that purpose confirms it. Mini tablet is what I would call it, smart phone was a dumb idea. Alas, language evolves.
Since 2000 .. (Score:3)
A PDA with a 1.5" screen was not a very good idea.
10% of interactions aren't planned? (Score:2)
I'd say it's entirely in line with notifications being disruptive.
That's a full 10% of interactions on smartphones that aren't planned. That's (from my point of view) quite hideous. I have very few alerts, by preference, as I cut them back to only the ones that I absolutely need, and the rest have proven to be irritating cruft that get in the way (every app wants to tell you about the latest, greatest thing you absolutely MUST see, that turns out to be nothing, but merrily soaked up a couple of minutes of
What about turning them off? (Score:2)
"The perceived disruptiveness of smartphones is not mainly driven by external notifications," the study's authors write, "but by an urge of the user to interact with their phone that seems to occur in an almost automatic manner, just as a smoker would light a cigarette."
Frankly my need to turn off notifications is worse than what they describe. The moment I see another annoying notification pop up anywhere, not just on my phone but PC, too, must I find the knob that kills it like my house was on fire.
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Agreed - the ability to completely turn off, or filter and control, notifications is a must-have. Unless the notifications are a key requirement for my job, my health, the safe use of the device, or the safety of my family, I am not interested.
I find it impossible to understand how anyone would find 11% involuntary interactions from a phone a reasonable price to pay for having apps installed. Which has me wondering: does that 11% include notifications the user enabled, or if those are part of the user initi
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I mean, I have notifications on from communications apps. Like, it would be hard to use competitors to SMS if SMSs got through promptly but other apps I had to constantly check.
Who benefits? (Score:2)
Have to wonder who payed to get the "positive" spin on? Is this a not-so-subtle response to the growing number of bans on personal phone usage in the workplace and schools?
I suspect a lot of people would find that 11% a big drag on personal productivity, and frickin' annoying as hell.