What is phubbing, and how does it affect relationships and marriages?

Nowadays, everyone is addicted to the new digital era; smartphones have now become a part of the daily routine. Even when a person has a packed schedule, they take their time out to check their phones, watch TV, talk, and communicate with people. A lot of people’s lives now depend on digital technology; it’s hard to escape the digital world. This addiction has tied us all together; phubbing is a new term in the digital world.

What is phubbing?

Phubbing is the act of ignoring someone in a social gathering by focusing on your phone instead of your partner. For example, if you have decided to spend time with your partner and you or your partner is constantly distracted or focused on their phone, scrolling through social media, answering calls, and reading emails can be very infuriating and may cause problems in a relationship. Many may feel offended and rejected.

How does phubbing affect a relationship?

Phubbing can cause conflict and problems in a relationship. It can disrupt emotional intimacy; phubbing may act as a communication barrier in your relationship. Emotional intimacy is a very critical element of a healthy element; the other partner may feel ignored, unimportant, and rejected, which can in the future make your partner feel isolated, frustrated, and lonely. It can lower relationship satisfaction and break the emotional connection due to the phubbing behavior. For example, imagine you are telling a really important story or a life update to your partner with full excitement and interest, and your partner is constantly distracted by his or her phone, or they have no clue of what you are talking about. You will feel less important and rejected. Such feelings can easily break an emotional connection in a healthy relationship.

How to overcome conflict and phubbing behavior?