Investigation of the relationship between nomophobia and job performance among nurses

Nomophobia may contribute to anxiety, attentional distraction, and compulsive smartphone-checking behaviors, which could interfere with nurses’ work-related functioning. This study aimed to examine the relationship between nomophobia and job performance among nurses and to identify factors associated with nomophobia. This cross-sectional correlational study included 111 nurses working at a university hospital. Data were collected using the Nurse Information Form, the Nomophobia Questionnaire (NMP-Q), and the Individual Work Performance Questionnaire (IWPQ). The primary analysis examined the Pearson correlation between total NMP-Q and IWPQ scores, with a 95% confidence interval (CI). Secondary correlation and exploratory analyses of smartphone use were performed with false-discovery-rate (FDR) correction. Multivariable linear regression with heteroskedasticity-consistent (HC3) standard errors was used to examine adjusted associations. The mean NMP-Q score was 73.37 ± 27.25, and the mean IWPQ total score was 3.86 ± 0.69. Total NMP-Q score was not significantly associated with perceived job performance ( r = − 0.098, 95% CI [− 0.279, 0.090], p = 0.305). The Spearman correlation analysis showed a similar result (ρ = −0.105, p = 0.274). Exploratory analyses revealed that NMP-Q scores differed according to daily smartphone use (q = 0.003), smartphone use during work (q = 0.011), and perceived excessive smartphone use (q = 0.003). In contrast, none of the comparisons of IWPQ total scores remained significant after FDR correction. In the adjusted model, nurses who reported more than 7 h of daily smartphone use had NMP-Q scores 21.36 points higher than those who reported 1–3 h/day (95% CI [5.52, 37.20], p = 0.008). The primary analysis did not show a clear association between nomophobia and perceived job performance among nurses; however, the estimated association was compatible with both no association and a small-to-moderate negative association. Longer daily smartphone use was associated with higher nomophobia scores. These findings should be interpreted cautiously given the sample size and the exploratory nature of the secondary analyses.