11 January 2013
RELATIONS: Texting may be ruining conversation and encouraging negative social behaviors among this era’s younger generation.
By John Burke, Staff Writer
Texting has experienced an upswing in recent years; the average teenager sends 60 texts a day according to a study done by the Pew Research Center. But while teenagers continually lean in favor of texting, another study on pew.org shows that the majority of adults still prefer phoning. This gap between generations is spoiling conversation between the two, as both sides grow increasingly annoyed at one another for not conforming to their preferred method of communication. This poses a problem especially for teenagers, who are just making their way into the world. They will be forced to adapt to the expectations of their peers as they become adults and resume direct contact once again. Due to long periods of abstinence, their conversation skills will have suffered and communication between the new working force of America and its mentors will be strained.
Texting is doing more than just disrupting communication; it is also bringing about derogatory social behavior. Scott Field (10) points out: “It’s easy to say anything you want over a text.” Research by the Sauder School of Business shows that deals done via text messaging were 31 percent more likely to involve lies than deals done face-to-face.
Many teenagers have no will to change the current system. When asked how her students communicate with her, Renee Houston, an associate professor of communication studies at the University of Puget Sound, said: “They never call, ever.” Lisa Auster-Gussman, a student at Virginia Tech University, realizes that the communication gap exists. “But I don’t communicate much with older people. So much of my life is set up over text,” she said. Some students realize that there is a problem, though, and are making attempts to change and bring others along with them. Hopefully, students like this will bridge the conversation gap between the two generations.