Addiction to Cell Phones Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Addiction to Cell Phones - Research Paper Example is a nation addicted to their cell phones. However, how do we decide whether our cell phone usage is normal, or if it is a real addiction that needs to be tackled in the same way? There are suggestions that cell phone addiction is an addiction like any other, so we need to apply the same conventions to this as we would for a drug or alcohol abuse problem. These include increased tolerance (needing more cell phone time to achieve the same result), an inability to cut back on use (an inability to leave the phone at home for a day or to enter a no signal area), and a reduction in competing behaviours (Hyman, 2013). Arguably, many cell phone users do have a cell phone addiction based on these criteria, because it can be difficult to be without a phone when those around you are consistently using theirs. Additionally, there are now situations in which we rely on a cell phone for social behaviours, which should be seen as positive. This is not the same negative consequence as would come from a reliance upon drugs and alcohol. Much of the language that people are using to describe this issue is quite biased. Whilst there are some scientific sources which tackle the issue from a psychological perspective (Hyman, 2013), news sources tend to side on hysterical (Carbonell et al, 2009). Mozes (2012) describes cell phones as an example of â€Å"materialism† and â€Å"impusiveness†, which are traditionally negative traits. This article suggests that much of the problem with cell phones could be compared to the actions of peacocks when they display their lek behaviour (Jenaro et al, 2007). This is backed up with some serious fact s and figures about the issues, as over 90% of students at U.S. colleges have a cell phone, and an average of 3200 texts are now sent per month by young adults. Arguably, this does signal a problem for those who use cell phones. 3200 texts are now sent by young people a month, which means that they must spend a lot of time on their cell