Attitude Toward the Smartphone (Privacy)

What it measures

A five-item scale measuring the degree to which a consumer perceives their smartphone as a deeply personal and private possession — one that belongs exclusively to them, that they are reluctant to share, and that they would feel uncomfortable having others use. Items capture both the psychological ownership dimension and the social boundary dimension of smartphone privacy, reflecting the intimate and personally bounded nature of the device.

Response format

7-point Likert

Scale items

• I think of my smartphone as a very personal object.
• I rarely let others use my smartphone.
• My smartphone is a really private possession.
• I would feel uncomfortable if someone used my smartphone.
• I think of my smartphone as "mine" and no one else's.

Full scale items shown. Always cite the original source when using this scale in research.

Usage notes & scoring

Single alpha: α = .85 — Melumad & Pham (2020, Study 1). VALIDITY: Not formally addressed. Scale created by Melumad (2021, personal correspondence). Part of a six-scale smartphone battery alongside Haptic Pleasure (SMHP), Portability (SMPT), Security Comfort (SMSC), Private Space (SMPS), and Stress Coping (SMST).

Recommended companion scales

Citation

Melumad, Shiri and Michel Tuan Pham (2020). The smartphone as a pacifier: A psychological and physiological investigation of its effects on stressed consumers. Journal of Marketing Research, 57(2), 236–256.

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