SRA-E Lisbon 2017

Smartphones are becoming increasingly indispensable in our daily lives. In 2016, about 76% of the German population and more than 90% of 18 to 49 year-old Germans were smartphone owners (Statista, 2017). On average, people spend over two hours a day using social media sites, texting, sending e-mails, making phone calls or playing games - sometimes even while driving a car or engaging in other activities that require attention. In the context of driving, mobile phone distraction increases the risk of accidents, and studies have shown that excessive mobile phone use correlates positively with risk behavior in other areas such as smoking (Koivusilta et al., 2003). The present study aimed at exploring the association between frequency of smartphone use and risk-taking attitude. We conducted an online study (N = 254) and measured participants’ smartphone addiction (frequency and need) and their domain-specific risk-taking attitude. Results replicated previous findings in that, overall, men showed higher risk-taking scores than women. Regarding smartphone use, results across all participants showed that values on the smartphone addiction scale correlate positively with risk-taking in the domains ethical, gambling, and health but negatively in the social domain. Surprisingly, a closer look at mobile phone type revealed that iPhone as opposed to Android users differ significantly on the smartphone addiction scale and in their risk-taking. Furthermore, results showed a significant interaction between gender and mobile phone type for smartphone addiction. Findings of the present study and follow-up questions will be discussed.