Are You A Nomophobe?

Your heart rate accelerates, you feel short of breath, you reach quickly to your pocket and feel a wave of relief as you find your phone is still there. If you know the panicked and disconnected feeling of leaving your mobile phone at home, you might be one of the many suffering from nomophobia.

Nomophobia is the fear of being out of mobile phone contact.

The term, an abbreviation for "no-mobile-phone phobia",[was coined during a study by the UK Post Office who commissioned YouGov, a UK-based research organization to look at anxieties suffered by mobile phone users.

A recent survey by U.K.-based mobile security service provider SecurEnvoy conducted among 1,000 people found that two thirds (66%) of respondents fear losing or being without their mobile phone. The phobia also includes the anxiety someone feels when not in the range of a cell tower to receive optimal reception.

Not surprisingly, nomophobia is on the rise - up 13% from just four years ago - as more consumers become strapped to their smartphones.

However, women (70%) worry more about losing their phones than men (61%). According to Andy Kemshall, chief technology officer and co-founder of SecurEnvoy, men were more likely to have nomophobia in 2008 but feel less overwhelmed now. Why the change of heart? Men are 11% more likely than women to carry around two mobile devices.

The study found that nearly 53 percent of mobile phone users in Britain tend to be anxious when they "lose their mobile phone, run out of battery or credit, or have no network coverage"...

Younger demographics are also more likely to be nomophobic, as 77% said they fear being without their phone. Meanwhile, those ages 25 to 34 are the second most nomophobic group, followed by mobile users over 55.

SecurEnvoy also cited a recent study published by the Helsinki Institute for Information Technology found that people check their phones about 34 times a day on average. If you do misplace your phone, it won’t take very long to realize it.

More than one in two nomophobes never switch off their mobile phones.

The study and subsequent coverage of the phobia resulted in two editorial columns authored by those who minimize their mobile phone use or choose not to own one at all, treating the condition with light undertones or outright disbelief and amusement.

For nomophobes to go without a cell phone at hand is a real torture, running short on battery or signal a real nightmare.

Nomophobes will periodically check to see if their cell phone is turned on or working, turning up the volume or calling their voicemail or calling to ask to call back to make sure their phone is working properly.

Nomophobia is a modern day phobia that every day is gaining more and more followers of those addicted to their cell phone and their unprecedented fear of being unable to interact with acquaintances.

Do you have nomophobia? What tech item can’t you live without?

Costa Rica has the ideal conditions to develop nomophobia due to the high penetration of cellular phones and the high growth in the use of smartphones in the country.