A mobile
phone device has become one of the most common communications tools being used
by both young and old world over. Everyone seems to own a mobile phone now. It
may even be “weird” to meet a person who does not own a mobile phone device. In
fact, the model and functionality of a mobile phone matters a lot among the
youths than just owning one. How fast is its internet, what operating system
platform does it use, battery life etc are questions about mobile phones. In
every document a person has to fill, there is a column instructing one to fill
in their mobile phone number. We no longer depend so much on the postal address
we write in our job application letters. Instead, one writes their mobile phone
digits on top of the letter. Anyway, who still receives a job interview feedback
by postal mail? Owning a mobile phone is not only a luxury, but a great
necessity. Gone are the days when there were incidences where people
who didn’t own a mobile phone had to walk to a nearby house or to their
friends with a mobile phone, while they waited for their relatives elsewhere to
call them through it.
These are
some statistics on mobile phone of 2012
Global mobile phone penetration is at 85% of the world’s
population
There are currently 5.98 billion mobile phone
subscriptions
Africa has about 644 million subscribers (about 11%)
LTE deployments in Africa are quickly gaining
momentum (11 million customers predicted by 2015)
Smartphone penetration rates in Africa are now at
a whopping 17 to 19 percent (that’s almost 1 in 5!)
However, there are negative effects
of mobile phones in our society despite the brilliant and fascinating mobile
phone services that have made life so smooth and on the go. In this
article, we will outline just but a few negative effects of the mobile phone.
1.
It is a common scenario in our
universities lecture halls to find almost all the students with their heads
down and hands on their handsets when a lecturer is late for a lesson or has
not made it altogether. If someone, not a lecturer, walks in, all heads go up
but they don’t stay there. No sooner has the person made his announcement or
made it to his seat than all heads go down and it is business as usual, be it
chatting through BBM, Whatsapp, 2go, Facebook, Sms or twitting. The same
happens in our public transport.
People listen to music, browse the internet, play games, text chatting or any
other mobile phone related activity. Ask yourself one simple question, why are
passengers not interested in the people around them? Why don’t they observe
what is happening around them? Why are people so busy with their phones? Is the
phone more important than the people around them? If a terrorist is on board,
will they notice as they seem so engrossed with their phones? Gone are the
days, when people were so much interested in knowing what is happening around
them. When people deeply cared to know what others are doing, where they are
going, or if they are alright? People cared about one another deeply,
irrespective of their class, race or culture.
2.
The
socio-economical impact is felt by local watch sellers. Most people do not buy
watches from shops or hawkers since handsets come with not only a watch but a calendar
and other notification applications. Funny, huh?
3.
As
earlier stated, owning a mobile phone has become a necessity in our society. However,
the overuse of mobile phones can contribute negatively to better social
attitudes, behaviour and communications. Several
people are overusing, misusing or even abusing their use of mobile phones. Such
persons tend to ignore those around them; they become emotionally attached to
their phones. At that point, they can even sleep with the phone. There is this
emotional attachment which often becomes visible when the phone gets missing. Studies
show that one realizes much faster they have lost a mobile phone than they do
if they lose their credit card. When a person who owns a mobile phone loses it,
it is as if a baby has been lost. The phone becomes the first thing they touch
when they wake up, and the last thing they read before going to bed. This leads
to a religious argument that mobile phones are now taking over the Bible or the
Quran because previously, when a good Christian/ Muslim wakes up, (s)he prays
and read the bible/ Quran as a way of devotion to his / her faith. Now the
phone seems to be taking over.
4.
The
other well known negative impact is road accidents. Statistics on causes of
road accidents show that most accidents are caused by drivers who use their
mobile phones while driving thus risking their lives and those of the
passengers on board. Despite the usage of wireless Bluetooth accessories, one
can cause an accident when on phone. This can happen when one receives shocking
news and loses control etc.
5.
Furthermore, continuous use of mobile phone
may mean spending too much time on the phone which could have been used for
something more productive. An individual may tend to ignore major tasks or
responsibilities that need to be carried out while overusing the phone.
It is my sincere hope that this article has initiated a good debate in you on how well to use you mobile phone and be a good time manager. We do not have all the time in this world. So let’s make good use of our time and appropriate use of our mobile phone device.
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