Cellphones Linked To Higher Stress In Family Life

[Ed Hansberry]

<a href="http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060105/tc_nm/cell_phones_family_tension_dc;_ylt=Ag4t3n14YuJLBL_G0ChacE9T.3QA;_ylu=X3oDMTBiMW04NW9mBHNlYwMlJVRPUCUl">http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060105/tc_nm/cell_phones_family_tension_dc;_ylt=Ag4t3n14YuJLBL_G0ChacE9T.3QA;_ylu=X3oDMTBiMW04NW9mBHNlYwMlJVRPUCUl</a><br /><br /><i>"The round-the-clock availability that cell phones and pagers have brought to people's lives may be taking a toll on family life, a new study suggests. The study, which followed more than 1,300 adults over 2 years, found that those who consistently used a mobile phone or pager throughout the study period were more likely to report negative "spillover" between work and home life -- and, in turn, less satisfaction with their family life. Spillover essentially means that the line between work and home begins to blur. Work life may invade home life -- when a parent is taking job-related calls at home, for instance -- or household issues may start to take up work time."</i><br /><br /><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/hansberry/2006/20060118-stress.gif" /><br /><br />Always up-to-date emails don't help either. :?

[Phoenix]

It's good to be informed, but sometimes I don't know what the purpose is of studies like these other than to state the obvious.

I mean, what are people going to do, just stop owning and carrying cell phones? It's like saying, driving is stressful. Yeah? So? Well, we all better get rid of our cars then, along with our home phones, too, our jobs, relationships, and whatever else is linked to stress, which could be almost anything.

Stress must be managed, that's true, but society isn't going to go backwards in time. Not to mention, in regards to this study, a person can screen their calls, which is what caller ID and voicemail allows us to do, or they can simply avoid answering the phone altogether or turn the device off.

The world is becoming a more and more stressful place as time goes on - and there are things we all have to adapt to, so the best way of handling technology is to simply establish bounderies or set limits, to communicate these with family and friends, and then follow through.

[JonathanWardRogers]

[ rant ]
Phoenix hit the nail on the head. This study, like so many others, seems to blame technology for something that is clearly caused by improper use of technology, not the technology itself. Yet another study that seeks to let people off the hook instead of taking responsibility for their own actions.
[ /rant ]

[PDANEWBIE]

My wife is a prime example. I love her to death and I don't get on her case because I know its her job and all but we have 2 totally different mindsets.

I only use my work provided cell phone for work and at 5:00 I actually stop answering it. I don't ask for remote access into the system (even though I am in IT) I would rather drive in when there is a problem then be on at 9 pm answering someones email.

My wife on the other hand uses her personal cell phone and gives ALL her employees the cell number. She gets calls on weekends and nights and even takes calls during family dinner. On top of that she uses a laptop that gets connected into their network the minute she gets home and she usually spends about 2 hours on it from 5 -10 on weekends sometimes more.

All I have to say is being able to be contacted is a good thing... TO A POINT.

(With this being vented I now have decided to make my wife go camping in a few weeks with no cell phone and no laptop in order to "detox" her!)

I don't doubt this at all.

[Phillip Dyson]

I agree with everyone elses posts. Its up to the user to manage their own lives.

Technology is A-moral. (Atleast in this century).
I have a cell phone, but I don't answer it everytime it rings. Its not on my departments phone list. On occasion, I'll give it out for very specific circumstances.

But since its not published 'globally' there is no expectation of me answering a call outside of specific situations.

As a gadget lover I've heard it all. Some people actually fear phones and organizers because they feel that they will somehow control their lives. People have actually told me these things.

I always tell them that these things are tools. "They work for you not the other way around."

[yslee]

What if it's not up to the user to manage their own lives? In an employer's market (like where I am), underpaid wages plus the typical mindset of an employer owning the employee means I see a lot of people chained to their jobs, and most have no way out (no thanks to housing loans in the hundreds of thousands).

That's why I can understand why some people fear phones, and refuse to take a company phone if possible. The invasion of private time is fairly prevalent, I'd say, and quality of life really suffers because of it.

[JonathanWardRogers]

What if it's not up to the user to manage their own lives?

It is always up to the user. The one thing that can never be taken from you is your freedom to choose. It's up to you to decide what's important to you and which choices to make. The problem is that most people don't like to hear that they are responsible for their choices. They don't like the options they have to chose from. They would rather blame it on someone/something else and say they have "no choice".

[yslee]

It is always up to the user. The one thing that can never be taken from you is your freedom to choose. It's up to you to decide what's important to you and which choices to make. The problem is that most people don't like to hear that they are responsible for their choices. They don't like the options they have to chose from. They would rather blame it on someone/something else and say they have "no choice".

Oh please. It's easy for you to say. I wonder if you have experienced discrimination on the basis for not being as "hard-working" as your collegues. Go on, describe the way out of the scenario in my previous post.

[JonathanWardRogers]

Oh please. It's easy for you to say. I wonder if you have experienced discrimination on the basis for not being as "hard-working" as your collegues. Go on, describe the way out of the scenario in my previous post.

You can chose to change jobs, change careers, change homes, etc. There are always choices. You apparently value your current job more than the hassle of changing jobs. Me too, and I work 10 to 20 hours a day on salary. There are a lot of factors involved in my decision to stay at my current job, not the least of which is my fear of the unknown that goes along with a job change. But I recognize that it is my decision to stay and put up with all the troubles.

And by the way, it is not that easy for me to say that I let my job interfere with my personal life because I'm too lazy and too scared to make a change. But if I didn't admit it I would be lying to myself. Being honest with yourself is often much harder than being honest with others.