Cell Phone and Face-to-Face Communication

Cell Phone and Face-To-Face Communication
“A whole new way to communicate has swept the nation and taken many along for the ride. The USA text message statistics have increased even within the last year: More text messages are sent by phone than phone calls” (Nicole). Before technology advanced, people dialed a number and had a verbal conversation. For people use to hand-write letters to friends across the country, something we now call “snail mail”. Since technology, society tends to be in a hurry. It seems more people opt to send a quick text, instead of having a verbal conversation or jotting down their thoughts on paper. This is just a glimpse into how communication is rapidly evolving. Which raises a question as to the cons of verbal communication and technological communication?
One investigation states that, ‘The latter finding might be explained by the fact that users of SMS communication with poor social skill report that this means of communication is less anxiety producing than more traditional forms” (Bonds-Raacke). One might interpret this texting (SMS) as a door way for people to discuss topics that would normally make them anxious. Another person might interpret this as creating an even bigger barrier for people with poor social skills. It seems to be a pro or con depending on who you are asking an opinion of.
Our society has become so driven on wanting things to get done quickly. “Another recent trend in society, directly tied to the increase in technology is the need for speed” (Hu). People don’t want to mail a letter, leave a voice message or drive to a house to see how a friend is doing. Yet before cell phones, that’s what people had to do to keep in contact. It wasn’t always a quick method, but it worked. Now society appears to have become impatient and lazy.
According to Trevor S. Hu, in his article called A Hurting Society, that because of cell phones we will become “a society of isolated people, stuck indoors, glued to a screen, losing the taste for real human contact and experience”. Take a second to think about it, cell phones now days are very high tech. Not only do we use them to send text messages, but they come with Facebook, which as most know, is a social media website. Yet with today’s technology you don’t need a computer to log on and socialize with your peers. Just pick up a cell phone, touch the Facebook icon and you’re connected! You can even access your banking or pay bills online by just opening your cell phone’s browser. Of course the font is small, but some prefer it to dialing a number and listening to an automated machine. A cell phone has just become very convenient.
People carry their cell phones with them everywhere; to the bathroom even, just so they can be reached at any time. According to a survey in Japan, “Since their rapid growth in popularity in the late 1990s, mobile phones have become an almost essential part of daily life” (Ishii). One of the studies found stated that “communication with others through the telephone for the purpose of companionship” (Jin). There are many reasons why people keep cell phones around to communicate but what about good old fashion conversation?
These are a few things you miss out on communicating through cell phones. Yes face-to-face communication can be difficult to maintain, but that used to be society’s only way to keep relationships. A statement to consider would be that “Biologists and psychologists have also shown that physical contact provides biological benefits, as well, and without it people become depressed and ill” (Hunter). People need physical interaction to convey emotions that can be transferred in person that you can’t get through a cell phone. Face-to-face communication was a part of our society long before cell phones were created and news flash, society survived! Otherwise we wouldn’t have been here to create cell phones.
Face-to-face helps you determine if someone is being truthful. It conveys emotions that can’t be seen or felt though a phone. However, it can make some people anxious, making it difficult to get their thoughts across. It’s not always as quick and simple as sending a text message. It requires a little more effort. With cell phones, and all their capabilities, people get a sense of instant gratification. A person has time to think out their thoughts, if needed, and say whatever they want without the tense feel coming across. It’s a quick fix for the busy lifestyles that society claims to have. However, it doesn’t have all the same benefits as a physical interaction.
When looking at cell phone communicating and verbal communicating, what positives and negatives can we find for each? Face-to-face and cell phone communications both have their ups and downs. Looking at different age groups, and asking how each person felt about communicating through a cell phone compared to in person and why. The responses were interesting and depending on whom you ask, either way can be expectable given the circumstances. For example, my grandpa said “face-to-face pressures you to listen and formulate your reply, but technology gives people more time to digest, verify the information and carefully craft a reply.” Yet when asked the same question, a supervisor stated that face-to-face communication is superior in every way. Whereas one co-worker said “you can’t tell if the person is being truthful and texting takes too long”. Each article, book, person or website will give you their opinion. Studies will show you what they have found, and depending on the group of people used, the results may sway you one way or another. What it really comes down to is which type of communication is best, given the situation, for each person. “Remember, it is about moderation; we don’t want technology to take over and become the face of conversations” (Nicole).