A tremendous growth in the use of mobile phones is due to the way humans perceived communication as said by Chansanchai, “eight in ten Americans depend on cell phones” (Chansanchai, Athima). Mobile devices have begun to take on bigger roles in our lives. It has become a central application to a variety of aspects in our lives, and not just our day-to-day conversations. We are becoming too dependent and this has caused an overwhelming popularity. Problems were created by the excessive use of devices, such as reducing study time, employees not getting work done, and not being able to respect family time. Obsessive cell phone use causes issues with everyone from family to professors to employers.
A college student may be able to spend 8+ hours daily on their cell phone. Cell phones can be a means for students to cheat. In a place where students once sat down in a table to conversate, it is now “normal” to have a group of quiet students with only the glare of the light screen reflecting onto their faces. While studying for an upcoming midterm test, a student may receive distracting notifications from snapchat or instagram. Students are tempted to pick it up and take a look at it for a minute which may seem like a short moment, but time goes by and hours start to pass, so students decide to put off their studying for later.
Using the mobile devices in class distracts us from listening to the professor during their lecture. This disables us from the vital information that could have been obtained by paying attention. Students force themselves to multitask between listening to the lecture and note taking while trying to reply to a text message. Although the use of smartphones could be equally as engaging and hands on as the use of the textbook lecture, smartphones could be used by students to use search engines such as Google and Internet explorer to look up answers during tests. Students can also take pictures of assignments or tests and send them to their peers with the same class.
127 our experts are availableright now
Mobile phone usage in the workplace can take away time from completing assigned tasks. Phone usage distracts the employee from attending to the customers, leading to customer complaints and then getting fired from the work area. In some cases workers operate motor vehicles as an occupation, such as a 18-wheeler trailer. Distracted driving is prohibited because it is not safe. Majority of the people admit that it’s tempting to check a text, take a call, or just use their mobile phones while driving which is why distracted driving accidents happen often.
Supporters claim employees using cell phones include benefits such as an increase in efficiency and productivity, “as the devices permit them to access emails and management information systems without being physically present…” (Lee, Jooyeoun). For example, in a managerial position it could be used to do the working schedules when they can’t have access to a desktop computer. The benefit of having cellphones in the workplace is in case of an emergency, help may be easier to reach. Some work sites are remote such as a regional salesperson, and phones sometimes are not available in emergency situations. In case of a motor vehicle breakdown or accident, having a cellphone provides a way to contact assistance or medical services. Similar to distracted driving, distracted equipment operation could be extremely dangerous. Although most companies use heavy equipment have anti-cell phone policies, the employees opposed to cell phone usage believe those policies are not enough to protect employees from operating equipment while distracted.
Knowing how families are busy nowadays, being busy with work schedules, extracurricular activities, and school. The free time we do have to spend with our family is consumed by cell phones. The more time spent scrolling through social media, the less time people have for important things such as work or family time. What people don’t realize is that attention has a limited capacity. Mobile phones change how we interact with others, texting while having a conversation with a friend is rude. Also, younger siblings tend to learn and copy their older siblings or parents, so constantly using a phone around them, the are likely to pick up on those habits as well. Kids who are constantly on screen tend to cope with their boredom and they are less likely to find a more productive activity to do. Losing precious time with family over a device that could easily be replaced, but not family time.
Supporters claim that cell phones could be used to save a person’s life. The most obvious reason why having a phone during an accident is because you can dial 911 and get help. There is apps on phones which include crisis checklists. GPS are also included in phones in which allow us to track people with a device on them. A cell phone could be used to take pictures of insurances for legal purposes, or take pictures of the license plates of the vehicles involved in the accident. Getting the contact information of any witnesses or victims involved could be very helpful with the case. Any other important information needed to be saved could be stored in the notes section for future references. To potentially save lives, “reaching for a smartphone during the first moments of a crisis can have a sort of grounding, calming effect, helping you remember what you need to focus on” (Source 3).
Mobile phones are reliable and convenient in some sort of situation and the also make life a lot more easier for us humans but too much of something may be unhealthy. Devices have become such a necessity that we cannot do anything without them. Mobile phones wermade to allow us to communicate more with others but on the contrary they have destroyed relationships and created issues with people’s mental and physical health issues. Psychological symptoms have developed if we spend time away from our devices. Anxiety, stress, depression, anger, and frustration could be developed when one loses their phone and cannot find it. People spend most of their time buried in their phones and they just don’t have the motivation to go out and do any other activity, this is what our society has come to.
