Young adults say mobile phones more important than TV
July 25, 2006
The Mobile Life Report, the biggest ever social study to examine how mobile phones have changed the way we live, is published by The Carphone Warehouse. Over 16,500 people were surveyed by polling organisation YouGov, revealing some new insights into how we live our lives today.
The report is the first of a series of initiatives being launched by Mobile Life, a forum set up by The Carphone Warehouse to study how mobile phones change the way we live.
Headline Findings:
-- Young adults say their mobile phone is more important to them than television
-- Texting has overtaken talking as the most popular way to use mobile phones
-- The majority of young women use their mobile phone to deter the unwanted advances of men
-- Approximately 1 in 10 people have had a mobile phone stolen. The figure rises to nearly 1 in 5 for young women
-- Half of people would use their mobile to record a crime, and more than a third would use the camera or video on their mobile phone to snap a celebrity or newsworthy event
-- Almost half of mobile phone-users think they are too much at the beck and call of their employer as a result of using their mobile phone for work
-- One in five people stop and turn their mobile phone off before sex
-- Six tribes of mobile phone users identified - Generation Mobile, Phonatics, Practical Parents, Fingers & Thumbs, Smart Connecteds and Silver Cynics
"We wanted to find out what impact the mobile phone has had on all aspects of our lives," said Charles Dunstone, chief executive officer, The Carphone Warehouse Group plc. "After all, who else is in the unique position of having such an independent and wide ranging view of the market in the UK and Europe."
"One of our four founding principles, which we believe is central to our continued success, is the ability to offer customers a better mobile life by anticipating and catering for their needs at every turn. We need to make sure we understand our customers and the way they live their lives, which is changing and evolving faster than ever. Establishing Mobile Life just seemed to make sense to us," continued Dunstone.
Key Trends
The Mobile Life Report looks at the impact of the mobile phone on society at large, family & relationships and work.
The Mobile Phone Overtakes TV as a Technology Icon
For young adults 18-24 years old, their mobile phone (26%) matters more to them than television (11%). Interestingly, among 18-24 year-old women, the proportion jumps to 32%, well ahead of television (11%). Men in this age group are not quite as attached to their phones as women, but 19% still name it as their most important technology product, well ahead of television.
Texting Revolution
Our 'talk ratio' is falling. On average people send 3.6 mobile text messages a day vs. making 2.8 voice calls a day. Among 18-24 year olds the texting revolution has had the biggest impact: for example, 51% of 18-24 year-olds send/receive at least six text messages a day - but only 15% have six or more mobile phone conversations a day. This trend also applies, though less dramatically, to the 25-29 year old mobile phone users.
Mobile Phones Used to Deter the Unwanted Advances of Men
In our parents' day, a book or newspaper prevented unwanted approaches in public. Today, 21% of respondents agreed that "I sometimes use my mobile phone in public situations to deter people from approaching me". This applies especially to women under 25, where the total reaches 55%.
Women More Susceptible to Mobile Crime
Approximately 1 in 10 people (9%) have had a mobile phone stolen. Young adults aged between 18 and 24 are most at risk, with 17% of women in this age group having had their phone stolen compared with 10% of men.
Citizen Journalism on the Increase
People were asked if they have ever used or considered using the camera or video on their mobile phone to record evidence of a crime, or to actually record a crime. Exactly half, 50%, said they would record evidence, and almost as many, 47%, would record a crime in progress. Additionally, more than a third, 36%, of people said they would use their mobiles to snap a celebrity or newsworthy event if the situation presented itself.
Switching off From Work
Mobile Life found that 41% of mobile phone-users think they are too much at the beck and call of their employer as a result of using their mobile phone for work. In addition, almost half of workers (47%) never, or hardly ever, turn their phone off. There is also widespread opposition to using a mobile phone on holiday for work-related calls. 57% consider it unreasonable to take a mobile phone on holiday to speak frequently to work colleagues.
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