Abstract
Mobile
phones
enable
people
to
communicate
when,
where,
and
with
whom
they
wish.
However,
users
are
often
troubled
to
find
themselves
at
the
beck
and
call
of
others.
To
gauge
attitudes
towards
mobiles,
students
from
universities
in
five
countries
were
asked
what
they
liked
most
and
liked
least
about
having
a
mobile
phone.
Responses
across
all
countries
indicated
that
communication
was
both
what
subjects
liked
most
and
least
–
enjoying
the
ability
to
contact
others
but
feeling
trapped
by
interlocutors’
ability
to
always
contact
them.
Concerns
about
dependency
on
the
device
paralleled
intensity
of
usage.
Among
the
distinctions
found
between
countries,
some
were
attributable
to
variation
in
available
technology,
while
others
appear
to
reflect
cultural
factors.