Telephone phobia

Telephone phobia (telephonophobia, telephobia, phone phobia) is reluctance or fear of making or taking phone calls, literally, "fear of telephone". It is considered to be a type of social phobia or social anxiety. It may be compared to glossophobia, in that both arise from having to engage with an audience, and the associated fear of being criticized, judged or made a fool of.

As is common with other fears and phobias, there is a wide spectrum of severity of the fear of phone conversations and corresponding difficulties. In 1993 it was reported that about 2.5 million people in Great Britain have telephone phobia.

The term "telephone apprehension" refers to a lower degree of telephone phobia, in which sufferers experience anxiety about the use of telephones, but to a less severe degree than that of an actual phobia.

Sufferers may have no problem communicating face to face, but have difficulty doing so over the telephone.

Causes

Fear of receiving calls may range from the action or thought of answering the phone to fear of its actual ringing. The ringing can generate a string of anxieties, characterized by thoughts associated with having to speak, perform and converse. Sufferers may perceive the other end as threatening or intimidating, Anxiety may be triggered by concerns that the caller may bear bad or upsetting news, or be a prank caller.