[The] diagram,obviously oversimplified, can be translated into language.
Whether a person habitually phones depends on the presence of some factors which make him desire to contact others frequently. How often this desire is present depends on his personality characteristics and upon socioeconomic factors.....The desire to contact is undoubtedly influenced by external conditions, such as emergencies or the sudden need for more information. The emphasis in this study, however, is upon those more or less permanent personality characteristics which might influence the strength of the desire to be in contact with friends and relatives......One the desire to contact is present, whether he uses the telephone or not depends on other socioeconomic factors, as well as certain of his attitudes, his perceptions, and his previous experience with phoning.