Social Impacts of Cell Phones


Due to the quick advancement of technology, cell phones have become a pivotal part of everyday life. Cell phone usage amongst the younger generation has skyrocketed compared to every other age group, and as such, younger people are increasingly relying on cell phones for social interactions; in some cases cell phones provide the only form of interaction for many people, which is causing many harmful effects.

Social Interactions


Many important aspects of an interaction are absent when people communicate through cell phones, such as body language and facial expressions. It is estimated that about 72% of teenagers text regularly and 33% send more than 100 texts per day. This is ea extremely high percentage of the teenage populace which uses cell phones as their main form of interaction with family and friends, and this has led to many problems for teenagers and young adults when they interact with others in real life.

One of the main detrimental effects of this is inability to hold a proper conversation with someone in the real world; many regular users of cell phones suffer from social anxiety and social awkwardness when put in such situations. This is detrimental to their futures as good communication skills are pivotal in the workforce and greatly hampers their ability to succeed.

Relationships


Recently there has been evidence to suggest that cell phone usage is harmful for relationships. In an experiment carried out in 2012, two strangers were paired up and told to interact with each other. The couples were split into two groups; one group was to interact in the presence of a cell phone and one group was to interact without the presence of a cell phone.

The couples that interacted in the vicinity of a cell phone reported less trust, and thought their partner was less empathic than the group of couples who interacted without the presence of a cell phone.

In a survey conducted in 2014 by The Pennsylvania State University and Brigham Young University, 143 women were surveyed regarding their cell phone use and how it affected their relationship. 75% of the women admitted that cell phones were ruining their relationship- a startling figure. 25% admitted that their boyfriend will text other people during their face-to-face conversation which a few thought was out of order.

Cell phones have provided the luxury and comfort of being able to communicate with someone half way across the world, however cell phones have also produced numerous negative side effects. Namely, they have stifled people’s social skills to such an extent that their life standards and relationships are under immediate threat.