Puligheddu Antonio, Porru Annamaria, Spano Andrea, Cataudella Stefania, Mascia Maria Lidia, Rollo Dolores, Cabras Cristina, Penna Maria Pietronilla, Lucangeli Daniela
Department of Developmental Psychology and Socialization, University of Padova, Via Venezia, 8, 35131 Padova, PD, Italy.
Department of Pedagogy, Psychology, Philosophy, University of Cagliari, Via Is Mirrionis 1, 09123 Cagliari, CA, Italy.
Children (Basel). 2025 Aug 2;12(8):1022. doi: 10.3390/children12081022.
Phubbing, a relatively new phenomenon in the field of digital risks, refers to the act of ignoring someone in favor of focusing on a smartphone during face-to-face interactions. Parental phubbing, a specific form of this behavior, is a prevalent negative parenting practice that can affect parent-child relationships and child development. However, the impact of parental phubbing on the emotional and behavioral development of preschool children remains unclear. This study aims to explore the relationship between parental phubbing and preschoolers' behavioral problems, as well as test whether parents' mindful attention awareness (MAA) acts as a mediator between them.
A questionnaire was administered to 138 Italian parents (mean age = 38.5, SD = 6.2) of 138 kindergarten preschoolers (mean age = 3.9, SD = 1.03). Questionnaires included the Generic Scale of Phubbing (GSP), the Mindful Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS), and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ).
Analyses revealed a significant negative correlation between the MAAS and SDQ total scores, a positive correlation between the GSP total score and the SDQ total score, and a negative correlation between the GSP total score and the MAAS total score. The mediation analysis did not show a direct effect of GSP on SDQ, suggesting that parental phubbing did not directly predict children's behavioral difficulties. Nevertheless, the indirect effect measured by bootstrapping was significant, indicating that parental MAA fully mediated the relationship between parental phubbing and preschoolers' problematic behaviors.
Although further research is needed, parental mindfulness may influence phubbing behaviors in parents providing valuable insights for early interventions aimed at reducing problem behaviors in young children.
低头族现象是数字风险领域中一个相对较新的现象，指在面对面交流时忽视他人而专注于智能手机的行为。父母低头族行为作为这种行为的一种特殊形式，是一种普遍存在的不良育儿方式，会影响亲子关系和儿童发展。然而，父母低头族行为对学龄前儿童情绪和行为发展的影响尚不清楚。本研究旨在探讨父母低头族行为与学龄前儿童行为问题之间的关系，并检验父母的正念注意力意识（MAA）是否在两者之间起中介作用。
对138名意大利幼儿园学龄前儿童（平均年龄=3.9岁，标准差=1.03）的138名家长（平均年龄=38.5岁，标准差=6.2）进行问卷调查。问卷包括低头族通用量表（GSP）、正念注意力意识量表（MAAS）和长处与困难问卷（SDQ）。
分析显示，MAAS总分与SDQ总分呈显著负相关，GSP总分与SDQ总分呈正相关，GSP总分与MAAS总分呈负相关。中介分析未显示GSP对SDQ有直接影响，这表明父母低头族行为并不能直接预测儿童的行为困难。然而，通过自抽样法测得的间接效应显著，表明父母的MAA完全中介了父母低头族行为与学龄前儿童问题行为之间的关系。
尽管仍需进一步研究，但父母的正念可能会影响父母的低头族行为，为旨在减少幼儿问题行为的早期干预提供有价值的见解。
