How Long Can You Go for Without Your Smartphone?
Your smartphone is, without a doubt, a valuable business asset. It keeps you connected to your business at all times, even when you’re home; but is this a good thing? Have you ever considered what your significant other might feel if you answer your phone while out to dinner? Thanks to the indisputable power of social science research, it’s been proven that smartphones are bad for our personal relationships. Gasp!
This revelation, albeit somewhat obvious, was the result of a test led by Virginia Tech’s Shalini Misra. 100 pairs of strangers were set up to have 10-minute conversations in the Washington D.C. area. Half of the pairs were told to make small talk, while the other half discussed more personal, feeling-oriented topics. During the duration of the test, the research team recorded when, and how often, participants took out their mobile devices.
Following the survey, the participants were asked to complete a survey commenting on the quality of the conversation experienced. The results show that people feel smartphones reduce the quality of conversation, which in turn produces weakened relationships. Here are some of the observations that were made:
- Pairs who frequently used their mobile devices during conversation had a decreased sense of “interconnectedness,” which was determined by the survey with answers like “I felt close to my conversation partner.”
- Even the simple act of placing the device on the table worked against the test participants.
- Feelings of “empathetic concern,” which were measured by whether or not the conversationalists really understood the feelings of each other, also decreased.