Is smartphone dependence a problem or just the way of the future?
Smartphones can be useful — for communication, social media, news, directions, and banking but are they indispensable?
Fifteen years ago, we couldn’t possibly have imagined the advancement in the technology we now carry like a necessity.
New research from the University of Virginia suggests smartphone dependency has consequences beyond the physical. It is eroding societal trust.
People are turning to their phones, not fellow humans, for help. Rather than stop to ask someone for directions, for example, we use our phone and, in the process, deny ourselves those spontaneous friendly interactions that build cohesive communities.
Many youngsters seem to have lost the art of communication as they are so engrossed in their phones, they forget to engage with those around them.
Our memories are no longer challenged. We no longer need to memorise phone numbers and it is too easy to “just Google it” wherever we are. Our social interactions are constantly being interrupted by calls and messages. And as for the perceived dangers .. people walk into other pedestrians and traffic while being preoccupied, tapping away on a mobile screen.
What are your views? Are you dependent on your mobile phone? Do you feel lost without it? Are our smartphones making us less smart? Are we relinquishing our humanness by the use of smartphones?
