Smartphones Affecting Concept of Privacy

Category: Science & Technology
Posted: May 17, 2012 03:40PM
Author: Guest_Jim_*

There's a good chance you have been trapped in an elevator or on a bus with someone talking on their phone. This can be annoying, depending on how loud the person is and what they are talking about. Researchers at Tel Aviv University were curious about what smartphone users think about situations like that, and privacy in general.

Of almost 150 participants, roughly half were smartphone users with the other half using regular cellphones. Despite both offering mobile communication, the different devices lead to different responses and behaviors. Smartphone users are 50% more likely to not be bothered by someone nearby talking on their phone in public, and 20% less likely to think they are bothering someone when on the phone themselves. While this makes some sense as the smartphone users may be more use to this behavior, smartphone users are also 70% more likely to think their phone provides them with a great deal of privacy.

Unsurprisingly, the smartphone users also described themselves as 'lost' or 'tense' when they are without their phone. Regular cellphone users however, have more positive feelings towards being without their device, describing the experience as 'quiet.'

The researchers believe some of this information, and that they are still collecting, should be used to redesign public spaces in the future. As the use of these areas change it stands to reason so too should the areas.

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