I'd rather text than talk to you in person!

Scientists Explain A Few Ways Technology Can Hurt Your Relationship


“We are allowing technology to kill our relationships because we tend to give our phone more attention than we do our partner.” – Unknown

The above quote pretty much sums up this post in a nutshell – technology has taken over our lives, and not in a good way.    Sure, technology has its benefits, giving rise to advancements in medicine and machinery, but it doesn’t do much good for humanity when it comes to smartphones. We have become utterly addicted to our mobile devices, and you don’t need any studies to prove this statement. Just look around you – you’ll likely see most people glued to their phone no matter where you go.

When it comes to relationships, this addiction has disastrous consequences. In the U.S., the average smartphone user spends 2 hours and 37 minutes on his phone per day, according to research from Statista. In Brazil, the average is nearly 5 hours! What does this mean?Basically, our phones have become a permanent extension of our hands, and we don’t pay much attention to the actual world around us. We have substituted virtual reality for reality, and it turns out that switching back and forth between the two worlds doesn’t come so easily.

Many people report that their relationships have suffered due to overuse of technology, and this doesn’t really come as a surprise when people seem to spend every second of free time on their phones.
When I was an IT professional a young woman asked me how could I stand using a Computer for 8 hrs or more each day. Now she may not  think that her mobile device is a computer but she is glued to it for the same hrs each day...
SMDH. at least I was getting paid for my time on a Computer.

1. IT TAKES YOU AWAY FROM THE PRESENT MOMENT

Why is he texting me
 instead of being here,
I feel like the 5th wheel.

How many times have you been engaged in a conversation with your partner, only to see them pull out their smartphone in the middle of it? They probably don’t do this on purpose, but it can make you think that your conversation isn’t as important as whatever they’re looking at on their phone. The more this happens, the less satisfied you’re likely to be in your relationship, because your partner’s attention is divided between you and their phone. In fact, in a study published in the journal Psychology of Popular Media Culture, researchers found that 70 % of women said that smartphones interfered with their relationship. hmmm!

Eye contact and active listening are very important components of communication, both of which are compromised when smartphones come into the picture. Intimate relationships require trust and communication, and you can’t build on these when you or your partner decides to scroll through Facebook while having a conversation. It’s downright rude to stare at your phone while your partner is talking to you, because this tells them that what they have to say doesn’t matter.


2. TECHNOLOGY RUINS QUALITY TIME TOGETHER

Two is company +1 ( your phone)
IS A CROWD, I'm out!

Most people today don’t have a lot of free time already, but when we spend an average of 2 hours and 37 minutes on our smartphones per day, that leaves practically nothing left for real relaxation. Not to mention, the same study that found 70% of women had “technoference” in their relationships also discovered that 62% of women said technology interfered with leisure time with their partner.

The more we let technology interrupt our lives, the more our relationships will suffer. For example, when couples go out on dates now, they seem to spend more time checking their phones than talking with their partner. This creates dissatisfaction and loneliness in a relationship, and isn’t the whole point of a relationship to have someone to talk to and bond with?!

3. IT CREATES RESENTMENT

I so do not have the time
To text you back right now!

As I’ve already said, being on your smartphone while spending time with your partner essentially checks you out of the real world. Your attention goes to the myriad of apps and notifications on your phone, creating a distraction from your real life. It might feel nice to escape the real world for a little while, but we have taken it overboard as a society.