Connecting and Disconnecting in Daily Life: An Integrative Model of (Dis)Connection Norms, Needs, and Habits

In a world with the potential to constantly connect via mobile media, it can be hard to disconnect. Studies have increasingly documented how people take “detoxes” from mobile media, but few have examined the moment-to-moment processes underlying disconnection and connection in everyday life. The current paper extends the Connection Cues framework to create an integrative model of connection and disconnection norms, habits, and needs in the context of mobile messaging. An experience sampling study in the United States and Germany (Total N = 243; n = 10,631 surveys) found that connection and disconnection behavior were largely shaped by norms, especially in the U.S. sample. Habits were more associated with connection behavior in the German sample. Unexpectedly, needs were largely unrelated to subsequent connection and disconnection behavior. These findings clarify the distinct but interwoven processes of connection and disconnection in daily life, with implications for balancing the competing pressures of (dis)connection.