Dear Cherubs, there is a peculiar moment familiar to anyone who owns a mobile phone: you are in the shower, hear what sounds exactly like your ringtone, leap out of the water like a damp detective, and discover absolutely nothing happened. Your phone is innocent. Your brain, meanwhile, has some explaining to do.

WHAT YOU’RE ACTUALLY EXPERIENCING

The phenomenon has names. Hearing your phone ring when it has not is generally called phantom ringing, while feeling your phone vibrate when it is not vibrating is known as phantom vibration syndrome.

Researchers also use the broader term “phantom phone signals” for mistaken perceptions involving ringing, vibrations or other phone alerts. A 2018 study of medical interns found that 60% reported phantom vibrations and 42% reported phantom ringing.

And this isn’t some obscure quirk affecting three people and a particularly anxious pigeon. Earlier research among medical staff found that 68% had experienced phantom vibrations.

So why does the brain do this?

Part of the answer appears to involve expectation, attention and familiarity. Your phone produces a small collection of highly recognisable signals: a particular ringtone, a familiar vibration pattern, a notification sound. After enough repetition, your brain becomes extremely good at detecting them.

The problem is that brains are prediction machines. When sensory information is weak or ambiguous, the brain doesn’t simply sit there waiting for perfect evidence. It interprets what it receives using previous experience and expectations.

That can make a sound from running water, a washing machine or another background noise briefly resemble your ringtone. Likewise, a tiny movement or sensation against your leg can be interpreted as the familiar buzz of a phone in your pocket.

THE PHONE THAT WAS NEVER THERE

The vibration version is particularly interesting because the sensation can feel completely physical. You may genuinely feel a buzz even though the device has remained perfectly still.

Research suggests that phone-use patterns can be associated with these phantom sensations. In one study, greater phone use and more frequent use of vibration mode were associated with phantom ringing and vibration.

Stress may also play a role in some circumstances, although the relationship is not straightforward. A longitudinal study of medical interns found that phantom ringing and vibration increased during stressful internship periods but did not show a simple correlation with anxiety or depression.

In other words, hearing your phone ring in the shower does not automatically mean you are stressed, addicted to your phone, or secretly losing the plot.

It is better understood as an ordinary perceptual error: the brain receives an ambiguous signal and, based on expectation and previous experience, gives it a very familiar meaning.

There is even a useful umbrella term: “phantom phone signals.” Research in young people has found these experiences to be surprisingly common, with one large study reporting them in 58.9% of participants.

So next time your pocket vibrates and you grab your phone only to find nothing, don’t immediately blame the technology.

Your phone may be silent.

Your brain is simply running notifications in the background.

For more accessible explainers on strange everyday phenomena and the science behind them, thisclaimer.com can be a useful place to explore further.

PubMed — Phantom Vibration Syndrome among medical staff: PubMed research page

Indian Journal of Psychological Medicine / PMC — Phantom Ringing and Phantom Vibration study: Full study at PMC

PubMed — Prevalence of Phantom Vibrations and Ringing Syndrome: PubMed research page

PubMed — Phantom vibration and phantom ringing systematic review: PubMed systematic review

PubMed — Phantom Phone Signals in youths: PubMed research page

thisclaimer.com — Further reading and accessible explainers: thisclaimer.com