Phubbing: The Chronically Online Habit F-cking Your Love Life
You’re welcome.
Dating in the age of technology and social media comes with easier access to new lovers and experiences, but also new red flags of our own.
Psychologist and contributor for Psychology Today Mark Travers shares research that phubbing, is fucking your dating life. Phubbing refers to ignoring your partner for your smartphone and comes from the term “phone snubbing.”
Although it may seem like a small behavior that happens here and there, these moments add up and compound, “gnawing at the fabric of your relationship,” Travers stated. The phenomenon is so grave, that a study refers to it as a ”social allergen” — essentially it makes you irritating as f-ck.
Naturally, nonchalant lovers may feel inclined to not care. However, “If not addressed, phubbing can lead to larger problems,” Travers says. “Your partner might become hyper-sensitively annoyed or disgusted with your repetitive phone checking.”
Instead, Travers recommends healthy boundary setting for your chronically online behavior. “Set a rule that phones go in a no-touch basket after 8 p.m.” for example and pivot to quality time with your lover(s). This will not only benefit “your relationship but also your mental and physical health,” he closes.
For Hypebae‘s sex and dating advice column, visit Ask a (S)expert.
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