I got asked the other day if I could live for one week without my mobile phone. There were other people around who thought they could do it, they really thought they could but I just don't know. I suppose there are a few things working against me in this situation. Firstly, I don't live at home with my parents and my house doesn't have a landline so I use my mobile for those calls and secondly, I forget to check my petrol gauge frequently - I've never broken down and had to make the call, but I definitely worry about it. So, aside from the fact that I enjoy texting my friends I suppose I have a computer and I don't actually need it but what effect does the mobile have on everyone else?
It was a long time ago, but I remember when having a mobile phone was a status symbol. The guy in the restaurant with the mobile phone when I was like 10 was the coolest. Now, at the time I didn't understand that it meant that his job was obviously so important that he needed to be contact-able during his leisure time - it was just cool - but what about mobile phones and work today?
So many people use their mobile phones for work, according to Leysia Palen and Amanda Hughes mobile phones used for work and recreation cause a caregiver to manage both aspects of their life in the same way and "The mobile phone itself embodies the intersection of multiple realms of life, with the realm of home clearly playing an important part" (Palen & Hughes, 2006).
In relation to the family unit some might say that the use of a mobile phone enables mothers to parent her children from a distance. Is it becoming a bit like having a GPS tracker on your kid or is that a bit too extravagant? Or maybe it gives some kids independence - If parents know they can contact their kids whenever they like then surely it's fine for them to go hang out with their friends anytime, right? I tend to think that it's a bit too hard to place the mobile phone in one category or the other. I mean, I know kids who never hear the end of it from their parents - 2 or 3 phone calls in an hour really is ridiculous.
Palen and Hughes, after studying 5 caregivers and their mobile phone use over a week, also discuss their findings and uncover that the mobile phone actually helps "conceptualise the idea of 'home base' as something that is extended beyond the physical boundaries of the house". Personally, I think my mobile phone enhances my relationship with my parents, I don't get to see them midweek, sometimes not for a couple of weeks, and without my phone I probably wouldn't talk to them. But there is also no pressure, I don't have to call them or text them but I like to, and I think it's probably the reason why I couldn't live without my phone.
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