Phubbing and Romantic Relationships Strategies of Polish couples of Generation Y to eliminate phubbing behavior

Since 2012, the term phubbing has been used to draw attention to the incorrect use of smartphones in social situations (Chotpitayasunondh & Douglas, 2018). Phubbing is a social phenomenon associated with the abuse of modern technologies and means ignoring someone in social situations due to playing with a phone or other mobile device (Aagaard, 2019). The term phubbing was created from a combination of the words telephone and snubbing. Once the phenomenon, which today called phubbing was problematic, was not considered, but over time the negative impact of smartphones on mental health and social relations was noticed. According to research to date, several disorders are associated with phubbing, e.g., smartphone addiction (Chotpitayasunondh & Douglas, 2016). Phubbing can contribute to depression, malaise, and deterioration of social relations (Ergün et al., 2019). Because of the severe consequences of phubbing, it's worth investigating how you can eliminate phubbing in a relationship. It was noticed that isolation, in this case, caused by the COVID19 pandemic, has similar consequences. The abuse of technological devices during social isolation can be hazardous to mental health. Aagaard (2019) also suggested in his research that possible strategies should be explored to limit the impact of technology on people's lives. So, in this thesis, the question was asked: What strategies do Polish couples from Generation Y implement to eliminate phubbing behavior in a relationship? The study participants were respondents belonging to Generation Y (born between 1980 - 1999) because it was noted that this age group is continuously connected to the Internet and uses technological devices in an excellent way (Sieńkowska, 2009). A qualitative research method was used because there are quantitative studies on phubbing, while there are still a few qualitative ones (Garris, 2020). Thirteen in-depth interviews were conducted and analyzed. In this thesis, strategies have been selected to help eliminate phubbing in a relationship. During the interviews, the respondents expressed their opinion on the effectiveness of implemented strategies. It was shown that respondents, during lockdown surprised by the new world situation, implemented a new strategy leveling phubbing. The analysis indicates that creating a working day routine is necessary to separate private and professional life and not expose the partner to phubbing. Before isolation, couples also implemented various anti-phubbing strategies. Installing monitoring applications that limit access and use of the phone turned out to be ineffective for all respondents.