It’s the first day of class. You’ve got a good feeling. You thrust the door open. You walk in. The class isn’t empty; actually, you’re the last one to show up. But instead of the excited pre-lecture chatter you see in the movies before a professor comes in, the only sound is that of your classmate double-tapping someone’s Instagram post.
We’ve all had a class where everyone was more focused on a phone than on the faces around them, and if you haven’t had a class like that, you’ve certainly had a similar experience at a meeting, a public event, a trip on the Shark Shuttle or maybe even at a party. Everyone is on his or her phone everywhere you go.
The millennial generation hates hearing this, understandably so. We aren’t to blame for having access to technology that our predecessors couldn’t imagine: technology that fits in our pockets. But when do these advances stop helping and start hurting? When does playing on your phone go from habit to addiction? I’m no expert, but I’d say it already has.
Smartphones have a lot of benefits. They are information powerhouses, equipped for quick and quality communication, and are readily available. So they come in handy when you get a flat tire, are having a debate with a friend or need to make a call when you’re running late. But smartphones are also very good at sucking up all of our attention. We use them to avoid talking to the annoying person we met in the store or to keep from doing our homework.
Smartphones create an escape from the things we don’t want to do. They shouldn’t, mainly because those things we don’t want to do are usually the ones we are supposed to. Everyone knows the consequences of procrastinating and that the annoying person we’re trying to avoid at the bus stop is still a fellow human being; a minute of conversation with them can’t hurt.
The list goes on and on with what can be replaced, or pushed aside, by a smartphone. Before you know it, that piece of computerized machinery becomes you’re right-hand man. Many of us even take it to bed to spend hours scrolling through a backlit screen before exhaustion finally knocks us out.
I’m guilty, too. In fact, before I reached this line of the article I looked at my phone three times, one of which included a mini-Tumblr hiatus. I claimed it was for inspiration. The truth is, and perhaps this applies to many, I don’t know why I kept checking my phone. There was no real reason.
Living in a world with a constant influx of information, not checking my phone often makes me feel like I’m missing out on something. I think that’s what’s makes our generation “phone addicts.” We’re always afraid of missing out, and that looks different for every person. Maybe you don’t care about social media, but you’re checking for a phone call or text message. It’s still hard to resist during class once you hear the buzz.
Speaking of buzz, have you ever checked your phone because you swear you felt it vibrate, only to be let down by a lack of notifications? Well, a 2007 study by David Laramie has shown that “phantom vibration syndrome” is not only a real but prevalent, especially among young people. Though it can happen to any phone user, the study links this occurrence and how often it happens to emotional dependence on smartphones. It other words, we’ve gotten to the point where our bodies are fabricating stimulation from our phones so that we can feel better.
But instead of running to your phone every time it does or does not beckon, why not try to break free? Challenge yourself to read the rest of this issue without checking your screen. Replace a Snapchat visit with a playdate with your dog, and the next time you go to the class of silence and Instagram posts, strike up a conversation with your deskmate. Maybe you’ll find that what you’ve been missing out on has actually been outside your phone all along.
Society can use a break, but that doesn’t have to be as hard as it sounds. You don’t have to go back to the flip phone. You don’t even need to cut out your smartphone completely.
I understand that with new technology, culture changes. I think it’s completely reasonable to say that a smartphone society should use their smartphones. But when misplacing a phone, an object that can be replaced, causes a routine panic attack among the majority of a population, it’s gone too far. It actually sounds a lot like withdrawal.
