A Mixed-Method Exploration into the Mobile Phone Rabbit Hole

Smartphones provide various functions supporting users in their daily lives. However, the temptation of getting distracted and tuning out is high leading to so-called rabbit holes. To quantify rabbit hole behavior, we developed an Android tracking application that collects smartphone usage enriched with experience sampling questionnaires. We analyzed 14,395 smartphone use sessions from 21 participants, collected over two weeks, showing that rabbit hole sessions are significantly longer and contain more user interaction, revealing a certain level of restlessness in use. The context of rabbit hole sessions and subjective results revealed different triggers for spending more time on the phone. Next, we conduct an expert focus group (N=6) to put the gained insights into perspective and formulate a definition of the mobile phone rabbit hole. Our results form the foundation for predicting and communicating the mobile phone rabbit hole, especially when prolonged smartphone use results in regret.