“Mommy, do you love your phone more than me?”: Parental device use and the adolescent-caregiver attachment bond

BRIEF RESEARCH REPORT articleFront. Psychol., 18 June 2026 Sec. Media PsychologyVolume 17 - 2026 | https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2026.1766665AbstractWhile there is robust literature on the negative impact of adolescent device use on physical and psychological health, there is less research on the use of technology in the presence of others and its implications for key relationships. Known as “technoference” and “phubbing,” these device-based behaviors have only recently been examined in parent-child contexts. The present study investigated adolescents' perceptions of their primary caregivers' device-centric behaviors, the emotional appraisal of that behavior, and their association with the caregiver–adolescent attachment relationship. We hypothesized that adolescents' perceptions of less attentional availability would be associated with higher levels of insecure attachment. To test this, we validated the Device Attachment Interference Scale (DAIS) in a general population sample of U.S. adolescents (N = 600; ages 12–17). We also examined the association between DAIS scores and adolescent-reported attachment to a primary caregiver using the Experiences in Close Relationships–Relationship Structures scale. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses supported a unidimensional structure of the DAIS. Additionally, higher DAIS scores were consistently associated with greater insecure attachment (both anxious and avoidant) to both mother- and father-like figures. These findings highlight adolescents' perceptions of caregiver attentional availability in the context of device use as a potentially important relational context associated with attachment insecurity. Implications, limitations, and directions for future research are discussed.IntroductionSeveral years ago, a mother familiar with the first author's work surrounding healthy device use and digital-behavior mindfulness for families, shared with him a distressing event in which her young daughter asked her, “Mommy, do you love your phone more than me?” (Anonymous, personal communication, 2018). Similar accounts had been increasingly emerging in his clinical practice, with adolescents reporting that parental attention to screens during bids for connection left them feeling devalued, dismissed, or unimportant. Although prior research has documented how digital media use may alter communication patterns between people (; Strauss et al., 2025), far less is known about the effect of device use in the proximity of others.

This is especially relevant to caregivers and whether screen use may impact relational dynamics with adolescents. In particular, whether it shapes youths' perceptions of caregiver attentional availability and responsiveness—an essential component of attachment security ()—and ultimately affects that bond.Smartphone use is ubiquitous. While data on parents is limited, many adults have acknowledged that their smartphone use interferes with time spent with their children; in 2020, 68% of parents reported being at least “sometimes” distracted by their phones when with their child (). Teens echo this experience. In a 2024 Pew survey, 46% reported a parent “at least sometimes gets distracted by their phone” during conversations (). Together, these data highlight a modern concern: parental attention is competed for-and often captured by-smartphones and other digital devices. Given the pervasiveness of such distraction, even a modest impact on parent-child interaction could have meaningful consequences. The present investigation addresses this gap by examining how adolescents' perception of caregiver attentional availability related to their device use is associated with attachment-relevant experiences within the family system.While there is robust literature investigating adolescent device use and its relationship with their physical and psychological health and wellbeing (Vinayak et al., 2024), there is a smaller group of studies on the association between technological distractions and relationship quality. The first research in this area focused on romantic and peer relationships (). In this context, the terms “technoference” (a portmanteau of technology and interference; ) and “phubbing” (a portmanteau of “phone” and “snubbing;” ) arose. Technoference predicts lower relationship satisfaction and quality and greater conflict (e.g., ; ). Another term, “absent presence,” () describes when an individual is physically “present” in a social setting, but mentally “absent” due to their captivation by a technological device such as a smartphone.Only recently has a widening body of research begun to explore the possible consequences of technoference/phubbing in parent-child relationships (). ) found a positive relationship between technoference and child behavior problems. Similarly, Pancani et al. (2021) found parental phubbing was negatively related to children's wellbeing and relationship quality.

In addition, ) measured mothers' time spent on their phones while with their children, finding that mothers who used social media on their phones showed greater distraction. Wu et al. (2022, p. 132) even describe parental phubbing as a “new form of social neglect during parent-child interactions,” resulting in adolescents who feel rejected by parents and alienated from peers. Similarly, ) found that adolescents who perceive their parents as preoccupied with phones report greater feelings of emotional neglect or insecurity.Perhaps most concerning, parental phubbing has been linked to insecure attachment in Chinese adolescents (Niu et al., 2020; Xie et al., 2019), American children (Zayia et al., 2021), and an adolescent clinical population (). Attachment theory () posits that infants are biologically predisposed to seek proximity to caregivers for protection and emotional regulation. Later, through repeated interactions, children internalize working models of self and others that guide expectations in other relationships (). These models generally correspond to secure or insecure (anxious, avoidant, or disorganized) attachment patterns (; ). If the child is consistently, responsively, and sensitively attended to, they develop a secure attachment to their primary caregiver and learn that they are important and that their needs will be met. Greater attachment security has been linked to greater wellbeing, interpersonal competence, and life satisfaction ().Insecure attachment is associated with a variety of mental health conditions, such as depression (Spruit et al., 2020), anxiety (Williams et al., 2017), and post-traumatic stress disorder (). Specifically, adolescent insecure attachment can lead to a range of outcomes, including difficulties with emotional regulation, self-esteem, and conflict resolution (Sutiyo, 2018). Insecure attachment is also linked with lifelong struggles with trust (of both self and others) and building healthy relationships, and thus with social isolation, behavioral problems, aggression, and risky behaviors, including substance abuse (). In addition, an insecure attachment in adolescents is tied to anxiety-driven clinginess or avoidance-driven emotional distance later in life ().While attachment styles tend to be relatively stable through adolescence, they are influenced by experience (; Waters et al.,

2000). Risk factors include inconsistent or unavailable parenting, mental or physical health struggles, addictive behaviors, internal family system ruptures, neglect, and abuse (Parolin and Simonelli, 2016; Turner et al., 2019). Each has been shown to have a negative unfavorable relationship with child attachment security (; U.S. National Library of Medicine, 2015). Because adolescence is a period in which parent-child attachment remains vital to healthy development and occupies a place of relational importance (), we wondered if contemporary challenges, such as parental distraction by digital devices (i.e., technoference or phubbing), could be associated with attachment insecurity in an American, adolescent population. Given its specific and subjective nature, we needed a measure that would capture their perceptions of caregiver attentional availability and be distinct from broader relationship satisfaction.Currently, there are various scales designed to generally measure technoference and phubbing within relationships. These include the Partner Phubbing Scale (Roberts and David, 2016), and its modified version for parents (Pancani et al., 2021), the Scale of Phubbing and the Generic Scale of Being Phubbed (), and the Technology Device Interference Scale (). Stockdale et al. (2018) later adapted ) technoference scale specifically for adolescents, examining how device use affects both the child and the quality of the parent-child relationship. Additionally, Zayia et al. (2021) used a brief four-item survey with a small sample of elementary-aged children to investigate how children's attachment to their mothers relates to their perceptions of parental technoference. While many of these measures demonstrate good psychometrics, few were developed for adolescents or address adolescents' perception of their primary caregiver's attentional availability related to their device use. And none of the existing research target a parent's device-centric behaviors as an attachment risk factor in adolescents.Current studyThe current study builds on a previous investigation where the authors created and validated a measure, examining whether an adolescent clinical population perceived that their primary caregiver's device distraction interfered with their attachment security (). This measure includes both behavioral items (caregiver using their phone) and emotional items (how they feel about caregiver device use), all of which measure the perception of caregiver attentional availability.

In that study, the authors' reported evidence for the unidimensional structure of the Device Attachment Interference Scale (). As predicted, higher scores on the DAIS were significantly correlated with greater insecure attachment (both avoidant and anxious) to mother figures. The same relationship did not exist for father figures; however, the relatively small number of fathers reported as primary caregivers suggested more data was needed.In the current study, three phases were conducted using a general population of U.S. adolescents. The first goal was to examine the psychometric properties of the DAIS. The second was to examine the reliability and validity of the DAIS. And the third was to investigate the relationship between device attachment interference (measured by the DAIS), and parental attachment (measured by the Experiences in Close Relationships- Relationship Structure scale [ECR-RS]; ). Two research questions were explored:Does the DAIS demonstrate evidence of reliability and validity in a general population of adolescents?Are higher scores on the DAIS associated with increased attachment insecurity?We predicted that higher scores on the DAIS would be linked to greater insecure attachment patterns in the adolescent sample. Further, we predicted that this relationship will hold regardless of the gender of the caregiver.MethodsParticipantsIn August of 2025, adolescents [n = 600; aged 12 to 17 (M = 14.45, SD = 1.69)] were recruited using Qualtrics, a cloud-based software platform. Among the participants, 75.5% identified as White, 13.8% Black/African American, 3.8% Asian, 3.5% Multiracial, 2% Unsure, 1% Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander, 0.3% American Indian/Alaskan Native, and 17.7% Hispanic or Latino. About 47.8% identified as Female, 47.2% Male, 2% genderqueer or gender non-conforming, 1.7% preferred not to respond, 0.9% as transgender, and 0.5% identified as “other” gender identity.