Consumers’ smartphone addiction: Impact of engagement and app type on wellbeing

The pervasive use of smartphones has increased consumers’ exposure to push notifications from mobile apps, which – while potentially beneficial at moderate levels – can compromise wellbeing at excessive levels (e.g., by instigating addiction). We conducted two studies to explore the impact of push notifications on smartphone addiction and its subsequent effect on consumer wellbeing, as mediated by consumer engagement. Study 1 investigates the relationship between push notifications and smartphone addiction and assesses whether engagement-based contributing (vs. consuming) behavior mitigates the adverse effect on well-being. The findings indicate that though push notifications are conducive to addiction, consumers’ active content contributions significantly enhance wellbeing by counteracting these negative effects. Study 2 builds on Study 1 by distinguishing the effects of consumer engagement based on app type (hedonic vs. utilitarian). The results show that consumers’ content-related contributing (consuming) behavior is more beneficial for hedonic (utilitarian) apps, respectively. Based on the results, we identify strategies through which consumer engagement can buffer the detrimental effects of smartphone addiction on consumer wellbeing.