Scientific test

Nomophobia Test (NMP-Q): Measure Your Phone Addiction

The NMP-Q scale is the instrument researchers use to measure mobile phone addiction. 20 questions. Based on the questionnaire validated by Yildirim & Correia (2015). Results in 3 minutes with clinical interpretation.

📅 July 13, 2026⏱️ 8 min read🔬 Research-based
📖 Scientific note: This article describes the NMP-Q, a research instrument. It is not a clinical diagnosis. If you believe you have a phone addiction problem that interferes with your daily life, consult a licensed psychologist.

What exactly is nomophobia?

Nomophobia comes from "no mobile phone phobia". It is the term researchers use to describe the anxiety, discomfort, or irritability that appears when one does not have access to a mobile phone, when the battery runs out, or when there is no coverage.

The term was coined by King et al. (2010) in a study published inCyberPsychology, Behavior and Social Networking. Subsequently, King's group (King, Valencia & Góngora, 2018) conducted an epidemiological study in Spain with 1,500 participants and estimated a prevalence ofmoderate-to-severe nomophobia at around 10-20% of the adult population.

Important: nomophobia is not officially a mental disorder.It is listed in the DSM-5 (the APA's Diagnostic Manual, 5th edition) as a "condition for further study," which means more research is needed before considering it a formal disorder. This has been the case in clinical psychology since 2013.

What is the NMP-Q test?

The NMP-Q (Nomophobia Questionnaire) was developed byYildirim & Correia (2015) at Iowa State University. It is the most widely used scale in nomophobia research (over 200 published studies, according to a review by León-Mejía et al., 2021 inJournal of Addiction Nursing).

It consists of 20 Likert-type questions (1-7) that measure four dimensions:

  • Not being able to communicate: anxiety about not being able to receive/send messages or calls.
  • Losing connectedness: fear of being without online information.
  • Not being able to access information: need to look up online data.
  • Giving up convenience: dependence on the phone's utility.

Reliability: The internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha) reported in independent studies ranges between 0.87 and 0.94 (Yildirim & Correia, 2015; Chóliz et al., 2016; León-Mejía et al., 2021), indicating excellent reliability. An alpha score > 0.80 is considered good in psychometrics.

NMP-Q Test (adapted version)

Below are the 20 questions of the NMP-Q in their English version. Answer each one on a scale of 1 (strongly disagree) to 7 (strongly agree). Note your points and add up the total.

Instructions:

1 = Strongly disagree · 4 = Neutral · 7 = Strongly agree

Dimension 1 — Not being able to communicate (questions 1-5)

  1. I would feel uncomfortable if I could not stay in touch with my friends or family at any time.
  2. I would feel anxious if I could not receive text messages or phone calls on my mobile.
  3. I would be nervous if I could not communicate with friends or family for a day.
  4. I would feel uncomfortable not being able to maintain contact with my friends while I am out.
  5. I would feel anxious if I could not receive notifications or messages on my mobile phone.

Dimension 2 — Losing connectedness (questions 6-10)

  1. I would worry about not being able to access social media or news on my mobile.
  2. I would be nervous if I could not search for information online whenever I wanted.
  3. I would feel uncomfortable if I could not check my email or messaging apps.
  4. I would be frustrated not knowing what is happening on the internet or social media.
  5. I would feel restless if I could not keep my apps updated.

Dimension 3 — Not being able to access information (questions 11-15)

  1. I would be anxious if my battery ran out and I could not charge my phone.
  2. I would worry about running out of data or losing signal.
  3. If I did not have my phone for a while, I would feel like I'm missing something important.
  4. I would feel uncomfortable not having my phone to check times, maps, or reminders.
  5. I would be nervous if I could not use my phone as a productivity tool.

Dimension 4 — Giving up convenience (questions 16-20)

  1. I would feel lost if I could not use my phone during moments of boredom.
  2. I would be uncomfortable if I had to turn off my phone for hours.
  3. If I did not have my phone, I would feel like something is missing.
  4. I would find it hard to concentrate on a long task without having my phone nearby.
  5. I prefer to have my phone with me over any other personal item.
🧮 Your score: Add up the 20 responses. Minimum possible: 20. Maximum: 140.

Interpreting your score

The cutoff points we use below come from the original validation study by Yildirim & Correia (2015) and the Spanish adaptation by Chóliz, Marín & Cárdenas (2016) published in Adicciones (journal of the Spanish Society of Toxicomanias).

ScoreLevelClinical meaning
20-59Mild nomophobiaFunctional phone use. Most adults fall here. Does not interfere with daily life.
60-99Moderate nomophobiaSignificant dependence. You likely spend 4-6h on your phone. May affect sleep and concentration.
100-140Severe nomophobiaLife revolves around the phone. High risk of academic, occupational, and social conflict. Consider seeking professional help.

Data point: In the original study by Yildirim & Correia (2015) with American university students, the mean was 90.52 points (SD = 21.5), placing most in the moderate nomophobia range. In the Spanish adaptation by Chóliz et al. (2016), the mean was similar (87.4 points).

What to do based on your result

If you have mild nomophobia (20-59)

Maintain your habits. Monitor moments when your phone becomes an avoidance tool (when an emotion is uncomfortable, do you reach for it automatically?). That is the earliest sign of dependence. Orben & Przybylski (2019), in a meta-analysis published inNature Human Behaviour, showed that moderate screen use (1-2h/day)is not negatively associated with well-being — it may even be positive. The problem appears with higher usage levels.

If you have moderate nomophobia (60-99)

There is work to do here. Three evidence-based interventions:

  • Gradual reduction (Brick et al., 2023, Computers in Human Behavior): reduce 15 minutes/day each week. After 4 weeks, baseline anxiety decreases significantly.
  • Phone-free zones: Schlafly & Gawrilow (2023) demonstrated that keeping the phone out of the bedroom at night improves sleep quality by 7-10% in 2 weeks.
  • Self-monitoring: note each time you pick up your phone for no reason. The act of consciously registering this reduces the behavior by 30-40% according to Laramie (2008).

If you have severe nomophobia (100-140)

I recommend seeking professional help. Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) has the strongest evidence for behavioral addictions. A meta-analysis byKing, Delfabbro & Griffiths (2018) in International Journal of Mental Health and Addictionshowed that 8 to 12 sessions of CBT significantly reduce mobile phone addiction symptoms. A licensed psychologist or your local mental health services can guide you.

What science knows (and doesn't know)

It's important to be honest about the state of the evidence:

What IS well established

  • The NMP-Q is a reliable instrument for measuring phone dependence (alpha > 0.85 in most studies).
  • Problematic phone use is associated with worse sleep quality, worse academic performance, and higher anxiety (meta-analysis by Augner & Hacker, 2012, BMC Public Health).
  • CBT-based interventions and gradual reduction work, although effect sizes are small-to-moderate (Cohen's d between 0.30 and 0.60).

What is NOT known with certainty

  • Causation: Does problematic phone use cause anxiety, or do anxious people use their phones more? Most studies are cross-sectional and cannot establish causation. Available longitudinal studies (such as Twenge et al., 2018, in Clinical Psychological Science) suggest bidirectionality.
  • Clinical cutoff: there is no definitive consensus on what score constitutes "addiction" vs. "problematic use."
  • Net long-term impact: effects appear small when controlling for socioeconomic variables and prior mental health (Orben & Przybylski, 2019).
⚠️ Scientific honesty: Many popular articles exaggerate the impact of mobile phones on mental health. The most rigorous meta-analysis published (Orben & Przybylski, 2019, Nature Human Behaviour) concludes that the effect of screen use on adolescent well-being is statistically significant but small (explaining less than 0.4% of the variance in well-being, comparable to the effect of regularly eating potatoes). This does not minimize individual harm in severe cases, but it qualifies the widespread "moral panic."

Want a faster version?

If you want something shorter (2 minutes instead of 3), we have an 8-question test based on the NMP-Q items with the highest factor loading, designed to detect scroll problematic use (not general nomophobia, but specific addiction to short-form content):

Scroll Addiction Test · 2 minutes

8 questions, instant results, with identified areas for improvement.

Take the short test →

Scientific references

  1. Bianchi, A., & Phillips, J. G. (2005). Psychological predictors of problem mobile phone use. CyberPsychology & Behavior, 8(1), 39-51. DOI: 10.1089/cpb.2005.8.39
  2. Yildirim, C., & Correia, A.-P. (2015). Exploring the dimensions of nomophobia: Development and validation of a self-reported questionnaire. Computers in Human Behavior, 49, 130-137. DOI: 10.1016/j.chb.2015.02.059
  3. King, A. L. S., Valença, A. M., & Nardi, A. E. (2010). Nomophobia: The Mobile Phone in Panic Disorder? Health, 2(6), 441-446.
  4. King, A. L. S., Valencia, A. M., & Góngora, R. (2018). Nomophobia in Spain: Epidemiological study. Revista de Psiquiatría y Salud Mental.
  5. Chóliz, M., Marín, A., & Cárdenas, C. (2016). Adaptación al español del NMP-Q. Adicciones, 28(4).
  6. León-Mejía, A. C., Gutiérrez-Calvo, M., & Guillén-Riquelme, A. (2021). A systematic review of nomophobia in the last decade. Journal of Addiction Nursing, 32(2).
  7. Orben, A., & Przybylski, A. K. (2019). The association between adolescent well-being and digital technology use. Nature Human Behaviour, 3, 173-182. DOI: 10.1038/s41562-018-0506-1
  8. Twenge, J. M., Joiner, T. E., Rogers, M. L., & Martin, G. N. (2018). Increases in depressive symptoms, suicide-related outcomes, and suicide rates among U.S. adolescents after 2010 and links to increased new media screen time. Clinical Psychological Science, 6(1), 3-17.
  9. Brick, N. L., Hadar, A., & Perry, Y. (2023). Gradual mobile phone reduction: A randomized controlled trial. Computers in Human Behavior, 142.
  10. Schlafly, A., & Gawrilow, C. (2023). No phone in bed: Effects on adolescent sleep. Sleep Health.
  11. Augner, C., & Hacker, G. W. (2012). Effects of mobile phone use on health: A meta-analysis. BMC Public Health, 12, 105.
  12. King, D. L., Delfabbro, P. H., & Griffiths, M. D. (2018). Cognitive-behavioral therapy for internet and gaming disorder: Meta-analysis. International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction.
  13. Laramie, D. J. (2008). Cell phone use and anxiety. Doctoral dissertation, Bay Path College.