Big five personality traits and problematic mobile phone use: A meta-analytic review

This article reports a meta-analysis of the relationships between the Big Five personality traits and problematic mobile phone use (PMPU). After searching and screening the literature, a total of 36 studies involving 15,660 participants were included in the analysis. Using the random-effects model, the results indicated that neuroticism and extraversion were positively associated with PMPU. Conversely, agreeableness and conscientiousness were negatively associated with PMPU, while openness showed no association with PMPU. The result also showed that culture could moderate the relationship between openness and PMPU. Specifically, the negative relationship between openness and PMPU was not significant in collectivist culture but was significant in individualistic culture. In conclusion, high neuroticism, high extraversion, low agreeableness, and low conscientiousness are associated with PMPU. Moreover, the relationship between neuroticism, conscientiousness, agreeableness and PMPU is relatively stable. Besides, cultural background moderates the relationship between openness and PMPU.