Sixth International Conference on Communication & Media Studies

Abstract

➡️Recorded Presentation Link: https://bostonu.zoom.us/rec/share/t8LcOTqile1I1SDkP5PE1a3_3AJs3YNXuhd8H_RUX_U821JUfX4cB84KmQSZkbE.XrMHisuBoFIalmD⬅️ Access Code: ZV.52.@F⬅️ All of us, at least throughout the developed world, seemingly carry mobile devices. This presentation discusses why–just maybe–we are better off without them. It is built on the premise the devices continually remove us from “the present” while potentially increasing anxiety; increasing psychological (and even physical) dependence on them; and increasing our constant “fear of missing out.” It reviews academic literature–as well as more popular/anecdotal suggestions–that speak to the advantages of eliminating (or curtailing) mobile phone use. Doing so it asks if we really, actually, “need” these devices as much as we think we do. Next it comments on recent and developing findings pointing out how “the human condition”–and the social, political, economic, and cultural happenings that influence that condition–is being altered…and not always for the better…through the adoption and diffusion of mobile devices. It then stresses that now is the first time in human history (yes, the FIRST time ever) when people have experienced the downfalls (some still being discovered) of 24-7 availability, continuous streams of information, and the replacement of verbal with mechanical information exchanges. It concludes by asking communication management professionals specifically–and the world of mobile device users generally–to consider to whether we ultimately control these mobile devices attached to our hips…. Or, perhaps, if the devices control us?