Leaving your cell phone out on the table during a date could ruin your chances of making a serious connection, finds new research in the Journal of Social and Personal Relationships.
Measures of relationship quality, trust, and empathy dropped roughly 20 to 35 percent among study participants when a cell phone was present and visible during meaningful, personal conversations. Another experiment revealed feelings of closeness also suffered significantly if a cell phone was left out in the study room.
Why? It’s possible the sight of your phone primes you and your date to think about your broader social networks, explains study coauthor Andrew Przybylski, Ph.D., of the University of Essex. Thinking about your friends or coworkers distracts both you and your date from the “here-and-now” of your conversation, and so messes with your ability to bond, Przybylski says.
So keep your cell or any other communication devices out of sight during a date—whether it’s your first or 50th, Przybylski advises. Do this, and you’ll send the woman you’re with the message that she’s your number one priority, he adds.
Source: Men’sHealth
