Perceived partner phubbing and relationship satisfaction: The indirect role of attachment-related behaviors

Smartphone use during face-to-face interaction may be experienced as a disruption of relational presence. This cross-sectional study examined whether perceived partner phubbing (PPP) was associated with relationship satisfaction directly and indirectly through an overall attachment-related behavior score. Participants were 396 unmarried and noncohabiting adults in Türkiye who owned a smartphone and had been in a romantic relationship for at least six months (331 women, 64 men, and one other; mean age = 23.20 years). Participants completed the Partner Phubbing Scale, the Couples Satisfaction Index, and the Brief Accessibility, Responsiveness, and Engagement Scale. Correlational and bootstrapped indirect-effect analyses were conducted. PPP was negatively associated with relationship satisfaction and attachment-related behaviors, whereas attachment-related behaviors were strongly and positively associated with relationship satisfaction. A significant indirect association emerged through the overall attachment-related behavior score, while the direct association remained significant. The findings suggest that perceived phone-related inattention may be linked to relationship evaluations partly through a broader pattern of attachment-related behaviors involving perceptions of both self and partner behavior. Longitudinal, dyadic research is needed to establish temporal and causal ordering.