In school settings, nomophobia—a newly identified form of problematic mobile phone use characterized by anxiety and discomfort experienced when an individual is unable to use or access their smartphone—poses significant challenges to students’ learning and daily life. Prior research on nomophobia has predominantly adopted a variable-centered perspective. However, if nomophobia is heterogeneous across subgroups, acknowledging this heterogeneity may inform the advancement of more tailored and productive therapeutic methods. Latent profile analysis (LPA) was conducted separately among high school students (N = 446) and college students (N = 667) to identify potential subgroup heterogeneity in nomophobia. To examine cross-group similarities in nomophobia profiles, a multi-group LPA was employed. Based on multiple model fit criteria, a three-profile solution—high nomophobia, moderate nomophobia, and low nomophobia—was identified for both groups. However, the multi-group LPA provided only partial support for the similarity of nomophobia profiles across educational stages, specifically in terms of configural and dispersion similarity. While similar nomophobia profiles emerged across groups, the partial equivalence suggests that intervention strategies for nomophobia may not be universally applicable across different educational levels. Additional studies should investigate the mechanisms underlying students’ nomophobia profiles and to inform differentiated interventions for educators, institutions, and policymakers.

Objectives: acute stress disorder (ASD) became prevalent among various populations during the COVID-19 pandemic, yet little research has examined the heterogeneity of ASD symptoms among college students. The purpose of this research was to explore subgroups of ASD symptoms using latent profile analysis (LPA) and to explore the predictors and mental health outcomes associated with these profiles. Methods: Using the person-centered method, we recruited 1198 college students (71.7% female) who self-reported their ASD, perceived social support, anxiety, depression, and life satisfaction from two Chinese universities following the COVID-19 outbreak. Results: The LPA results found three ASD symptom severity profiles: low (56.7%), moderate (31.6%), and high (11.7%), particularly characterized by reexperiencing and arousal symptoms. This study found that students in the moderate and high ASD subgroups were more likely to be female, have lower socioeconomic status, belong to minority groups, report lower self-rated health, and perceive less social support compared to those in the low ASD subgroup. Furthermore, compared to the low and moderate ASD subgroups, the high ASD subgroup was linked to elevated anxiety and depression and lower life satisfaction. Conclusions: These findings underscore the significance of identifying specific ASD symptom subgroups to effectively target prevention and intervention efforts.