June 7, 2005
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Sergio Chaparro's information-technology students had more than just a healthy attachment to their cell phones.
When he asked them to shut them off for three days, they panicked.
"They were afraid. They were truly
afraid," Chaparro, then an instructor at Rutgers University in New
Jersey, recalled of the assignment last year. "They thought it was
going to be a painful experience, and they were right."Only three of about 220 students
managed to complete the assignment. To Chaparro, now an assistant
professor at Simmons College in Boston, the experiment confirmed what
he strongly suspected was a widespread psychological dependence on cell
phones."I think it's critical that people realize their level of dependency, and possibly do something about it," he said.
Business executives. Soccer moms.
Travelers. Teenagers. All of them adore their cell phones. But when
does love turn into addiction?A Korean study found recently that
nearly a third of high school students showed signs of addiction,
including paranoia, when they were without their phones, and two-thirds
were "constantly worried" that they would miss a text message when
their phones were off.In Britain, researchers concluded
that people are so intimately connected with their cell phones that
they see them as "an essential item, an extension of self."
Personally, I know I use the
phone a lot, but it's not my only or nearly even largest form of
communication. I spend about 12 hours a day talking with co-workers as
we're driving and working together - there's rarely a moment where we
aren't talking.With the phone, I've averaged 35 minutes a day over the last year.
Online, ok, spend an exceedingly great amount of time talking here, but
the face-to-face time whoops it up. Go ahead, tell me I'm an addict to
the phone/IM/e-mail/face-to-face interaction.
Comments (8)
Maybe you're just addicted to communication. Addict!!
You should have waited more than 6 minutes after I posted that before replying to add effect.
I personally think that I could live without my cell phone. I rarely ever use all my minutes and generally those minutes are spent talking to my mom on my way from work or on my way to class. I really only have a cell phone because I used to drive a horrible car and I was constantly afraid it would break down in the middle of nowhere and I'd be stranded. So, I guess I'm one of those rarities. Take away my email, however, and I'd be like a fish out of water...haha!
PS. Yes, you're an addict. There might even be a medication out there for that (now you can really tell that I work in the drug industry).
I never said I wasn't just as addicted as you! But, you must admit, my cell phone usage is much less than yours
...which reminds me. I need your cell # again...
I prefer to think that I ENJOY communicating!
No, no, I think addiction is the correct word. And let me tell you, I had to work hard to make sure this comment came a mere three minutes after yours...
Allow me to address this fully.
dependency
n 1: lack of independence or self-sufficiency [syn: dependence, dependance] 2: being abnormally tolerant to and dependent on something that is psychologically or physically habit-forming (especially alcohol or narcotic drugs) [syn: addiction, dependence, habituation] 3: a geographical area politically controlled by a distant country [syn: colony]
ad·di·tion
n 1. The act or process of adding, especially the process of computing with sets of numbers so as to find their sum.
2. Something added, such as a room or section appended to a building.
Wait a sec....
addiction
n 1: being abnormally tolerant to and dependent on something that is psychologically or physically habit-forming (especially alcohol or narcotic drugs) [syn: dependence, dependency, habituation] 2: an abnormally strong craving 3: (Roman law) a formal award by a court sentence of a thing or person to another (as of a debtor to his creditor); a surrender to a master; "under Roman law addiction was the justification for slavery"
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I think I fall under this category.
need
n 1. A condition or situation in which something is required or wanted: crops in need of water; a need for affection.
2. Something required or wanted; a requisite: “Those of us who led the charge for these women's issues... shared a common vision in the needs of women” (Olympia Snowe).
3. Necessity; obligation: There is no need for you to go.
4. A condition of poverty or misfortune: The family is in dire need.
Definitions from dictionary.com.
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