When Phones Replace Faces: From Phubbing to Mental Well-Being Among High School Students

Abstract

 Phubbing, defined as prioritizing smartphone use over face-to-face interaction, has become increasingly prevalent among adolescents, raising concerns about its potential implications for mental well-being in school contexts. Given the intersection of digital engagement with developmental and academic demands during adolescence, understanding the psychological processes associated with phubbing is particularly important. This study examined whether self-control and academic expectations stress were associated with the link between phubbing and mental well-being among adolescents. Participants were 400 high school students in Türkiye (aged 14–19 years; 40.3% male; M = 15.93, SD = 1.10) recruited through convenience sampling. Structural equation modeling revealed that phubbing was indirectly associated with lower mental well-being through reduced self-control and higher academic expectations stress within the tested model. In addition, self-control was associated with mental well-being both directly and indirectly via academic expectations stress. Overall, the findings suggest that self-regulatory processes and academic stress are closely intertwined with adolescents’ phubbing behaviors and mental well-being. These results highlight the relevance of addressing digital self-regulation and academic stress within school-based mental health and counselling frameworks, while underscoring the need for longitudinal research to clarify the directionality of these associations.