Are you planning to unplug yourself for a day or two? That may be a bit ambitious for you. One study even suggests that you don't only miss your iPhone, but you don't function perfectly without it.
Around 70% of smartphone users can't find themselves departed from their devices for a long time. In fact, they bring these phones all the way to the bathroom. Meanwhile, a study conducted by a team from the University of Missouri reveals that being away from your iPhone, or actually any type of smart phone, may induce symptoms of stress. This then affects your cognitive performance and even leads to anxiety.
For the study, they had 40 men and women who answered two sets of simple word searches. In the first round, they answered these puzzles with their phones nearby. The researches, on the other hand, obtained their vital signs such as their blood pressure and heart rate.
For the second round, they answered the same simple puzzles, but this time the phones were a few feet away from them. The researchers then called these phones, which were then left ringing. Users cannot answer these phones while they're also buried in the puzzles. Just like in the first round, their vital signs were measured.
The newer vital information revealed spikes in their heart rate and blood pressure, which are common signs of stress and agitation. They also performed rather poorly in the puzzles and found fewer words even if the puzzles are the same and provided with a uniform time limit.
What caused these elevations? Researchers believe that the idea they could not answer their phones even if they are nearby caused these spikes. In a much deeper perspective, participants and perhaps even most smartphone users have already considered the likes of iPhones as part of their identity: remove them and they lose a portion of their selves as well.
The researchers then advised that to maximize cognition, keep your phone close with you, especially if you're in the middle of a very important task.
