» Lentis/The Text Effect
10/07/21 02:03 from store.academic2.ru

Technologies such as text messaging increase convenience and efficiency, but carry with them unintended risks.

History[edit | edit source]

In 1984 Global System for Mobile Communications invented the text message [1] On December 3, 1992, Neil Papworth sent the first text message from his computer to Richard Jarvis’ phone and it said, “Merry Christmas.” [2] Just eight years later, the texting craze began in the United States. The average text messages sent per month rose from 0.4 messages per month in 1995 to 35 messages per month in 2000.[3] Text messaging has been escalating since 2000 with new and better technology coming out all the time.

Texting Demographics[edit | edit source]

Although texting affects all age ranges in the United States, the largest group texting is 13 to 17 years of age, or teenagers. [4] The average American teen sent 3,339 text messages per month in 2010, as compared to 191 phone calls per month. Teen females drive up that average, at 4,050 texts per month. There has been a 611% increase in the number of text messages sent per month in three years. While safety was the main reported reason teens got cell phones in 2008, today, the ability to text outranks both safety and the ability to contact friends or family by phone.[5]

The next age demographic (18-24 years) sends less than half the texts of teenagers, at 1,630 per month. In all groups under age 55, voice usage of cell phones is declining while text messaging is increasing. [6]

Because of this sudden increase in texting especially among teenagers, there is great concern. Although text messaging provides benefits such as convenience and efficiency in communication, there may be risks that are not being taken into account by users such as learning, health, and privacy affects.

The changing use of English in text messaging may affect language development.

Textese[edit | edit source]

Texting has spurred the development of its own language, referred to as “textese” or “txtspk.” In the interest of convenience, text users shorten or substitute words for brevity, and to maximize content in 160 characters. The online texting dictionary NetLingo includes 2,039 different texting acronyms and shorthand.[7] Usage is prevalent enough that the 2011 Oxford English dictionary included LOL, OMG, FYI, IMHO, BFF, and ♥. [8] The main three categories of textese are:

homophones: replacing parts of words with letters or numbers that sound the same

gr8 'great,' RU 'are you'

initials: replacing a phrase with a group of letters

ROFL 'rolling on the floor laughing'

omissions: dropping "non-essential" letters when spelling words

wud 'would'

Language Development[edit | edit source]

While teens send the most text messages, the younger half of this group is shown to be the most accepting of textese. This invites concern as the adolescent age group is also still learning grammar in the middle school setting. [9] Studies by Wake Forest and Penn State show a negative correlation between the increased use of textese and scores on standardized grammar tests, controlling for age and grade. The effect was more exaggerated in younger students than the college age demographic.[10]. The same effect has been shown in studies in Finland,[11] Sweden,[12] and Great Britain.[13] Poor grammar scores in the Wake Forest study were predicted by total textese in texts both sent and received. This suggests that parents can negatively impact their children's language development in their own use of textese.

Texting also has an impact on vocabulary. A University of Calgary study found that those who text more are less accepting of the use of new words, as opposed to those who primary read print media. Students are exposed to greater variety of language in traditional print media than peer-to-peer texting. [14]

In contrast, other studies have shown a positive effect on reading comprehension and varied sentence structure with number of text messages sent per month. Only 47% of teachers in a University of Alabama study reported seeing textese appear in their students' writing in school. [15] Similiary, texting has been shown to have no effect on capitalization and punctuation in formal writing, including the multiple punctuation common in texting (e.g., what??!!!).[16]

As text messaging is a rather new technology, more studies are needed to show conclusive effects of texting on language development.

Texting is an integral part of everyday life, but it has health risks not always considered including insomnia, anxiety, depression, and carpal tunnel.

Insomnia[edit | edit source]

Untreated Carpal Tunnel

Insomnia is a risk of text messaging. A study done in November 2010 found the adolescents aged 8 to 22 years are being woken up at least once per night because of a text message or phone call, and they are sending or receiving an average of 33.5 text messages per night.[17] Another study found that college students are losing an average of 45 minutes per week of precious sleep due to cellphone usage in the middle of the night. [18] The both lack of sleep and the interruption of necessary REM sleep cycles can lead to drowsiness, lack of productivity, and even physical effects such as lowered blood sugar, memory impairment, and weakened immune system. [19]

Anxiety and Depression[edit | edit source]

Another health risk is emotional encompassing both anxiety and depression caused by cell phone usage. A study done in South Korea found there to be a direct correlation between cell phone usage and how a person is feeling. The more a person uses their cell phone, the more depressed that person feels and the lower self-esteem that person possesses. [20]Sherry Turkle, a psychoanalyst in human-interaction focusing on technology usage, said, “Being alone feels like a problem that needs to be solved…constant connection is changing the way people think about themselves.” In a recent TED talk she discusses how the constant need to be connected is actually causing more loneliness and depression among people. She said that without the ability to disconnect and have true alone time, that this loneliness and depression will only continue and become worse. [21]

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome[edit | edit source]

The most frightening health risk is the rise of carpal tunnel syndrome. Carpal tunnel is caused by small repetitive movements much like texting.[22] The former president of the American Society of Hand Therapist (ASHT) Donna Breger Stanton has said, “Handheld electronics may require prolonged grips, repetitive motion on small buttons and awkward wrist movements. This combination can lead to an increased susceptibility to hand, wrist and arm ailments such as carpal tunnel syndrome and tendonitis.”[23]Virgin Mobile released a statement in February of 2006 warning users of the risks of repetitive texting causing carpal tunnel or other hand or wrist pains. The website, www.practisesafetext.com, was even released by Virgin Mobile to raise awareness. [24]

Texting while driving

Secondary Health Effects[edit | edit source]

There are also secondary health effects including injuring oneself due to walking while texting and driving while texting. [25]

Unfortunately, because of the recent increase in texting, there is little conclusive research done so far regarding the health effects.

A study[26] showed that about 80% of its participants considered their mobile devices private, some even comparing the reading of another persons text messages as equivalent to going through someone's mail. Text messages are generally perceived as private and this perception often exposes people to various privacy risks.

Phone Spy Applications[edit | edit source]

The evolution of technology has led to an increase in creation of applications and websites that can perform formerly impossible tasks. Recently, there has been an increasing availability of phone spy applications. These are applications that allow you to spy on your significant other's/child's/employee's location, emails, text messages and much more. The methods of spying vary. Applications such as mobile spy require you to create an online account, which when you log in has a full record of calls (incoming,outgoing and duration) and text messages (sent and received) of the person you are spying on. Other apps such as ephonetracker and sms secret replicator[27] send the data to your email address or phone. However,one thing is common, all these apps can be secretly downloaded onto the phone you wish to track without the owner's knowledge.

Although most applications have disclaimers such as, "It is a federal and state offense in most countries to install monitoring/surveillance software onto a phone which you do not own or have proper authorization to install. It may also be an offense in your jurisdiction to monitor the activities of other individuals...You must always notify a person they are being monitored if they are over age 18"[28], there is no way to ensure these rules are followed.

Cell Phone Carriers[edit | edit source]

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