Cell Phone Etiquette - Technology InformationThere was a time when mobile telephones were somewhat rare--when having one of those handheld status symbols lent the user an air of importance. But that was then and this is now. Today, cell phones are just about as commonplace as traditional "landline" phones. There are an estimated 100 million cell phones in use in the United States, and the number continues to rise with some 46,000 new users signing on daily.
As cell phones become more affordable and thus more widely deployed, nobody's as impressed with them as they once were. Nor are they impressed by the ostentatious behavior once associated with cell phones--and often intended more to impress those around the user than the person with whom the user was speaking. In short, mobile phone users are finding it necessary to adopt a little tact and clean up their act.
Just as the behavior we expect and tolerate from children becomes more tightly defined as they mature, society is expecting a higher level of behavior from cell phone users as that market matures. The proliferation of mobile telephones has fostered a backlash against rude cell phone users.
Perhaps the most infamous incident of cell phone intolerance came in March 1999 when actor Laurence Fishburne stopped in the midst of a stage performance of A Lion in Winter to berate an audience member allowing a cell phone to ring. The chastened viewer hastily exited the theater, and the performance resumed following an ovation from the remaining audience members.
Public sentiment would seem to be on Fishburne's side. A poll conducted by Luntz Research on behalf of 1-800-FLOWERS.COM found 62 percent of Americans think "talking on a cell phone at a theater or event" is downright rude, and 49 percent say owners of cell phones should be removed from theaters if their phones ring during a performance.
"Cell phone abuse is the most common and most disliked e-etiquette faux pas in today's technological environment," says pollster Frank Luntz. "Though their bad behavior still remains an annoyance to the noncell-phone public, those with cell phones nevertheless hold roughly the same opinions about proper cellular etiquette as the general population. They just don't practice what they preach."
According to the survey, other places where it's considered rude to allow a cell phone to ring include during an important meeting (83 percent) or a religious service (82 percent). Lesser infractions include talking on a cell phone while riding in a car (23 percent) or at a store (15 percent) and participating in a conference call via cell phone (12 percent).
Just as many restaurants and other public gathering places now restrict smoking to specified areas, restrictions on cell phone use are beginning to be imposed in some upscale eateries, theaters, libraries, museums, hospitals, and other public places. Some establishments are creating cell phone lounges or designating specific areas for cell phone use. Others are banning cell phone use altogether. This is especially common in hospitals where cellular transmissions can interfere with sophisticated medical equipment. The Federal Aviation Administration bans cell phone use on airplanes because their signals can interfere with navigation equipment.
Words from the woods
Even the great outdoors isn't safe from the onslaught of mobile phones. Where once people followed the call of the wild to get away from civilization, many now stay connected to it when they go--making and taking calls in the wild. Cell phones can be annoying to hikers and campers more interested in chirping birds and babbling brooks than chirping phones and babbling callers, but they pose a greater concern for park rangers who now find themselves fielding a plethora of frivolous phone calls from visitors with minor emergencies. Although rangers may decline to send a helicopter to pick up a hiker whose new designer hiking boots have rubbed blisters on his or her feet, the time it takes to process such calls can slow response time for true emergencies, some of which are reported on cell phones.
The industry weighs in
The push for responsible and courteous cell phone use is finding support among a variety of cell phone industry players. Service provider U.s. Cellular has published a list of seven wireless etiquette tips on its Website and distributes them in its retail stores and sales kiosks in Wal-Mart stores. The list advises users to focus on safety, observe wireless-free quiet areas, respect others in crowded areas, speak in low conversational tones, make amends gracefully for the occasional cellular faux pas, use available technology to avoid the aforementioned faux pas, and to think first of the people in close proximity instead of those on the other end of the phone.
Nokia has teamed with San Diego Mayor Susan Golding in promoting courteous cellular phone use.
The San Diego initiative began in response to an online poll in which Golding asked citizens if they would support restrictions on cell phone usage in certain places. The nearly 5,300 respondents overwhelmingly favored cell phone restrictions in theaters and classrooms.
The partnership between Nokia and Mayor Golding's office began in 1999 with Cellular Phone Courtesy Week and has expanded into a multiphase nationwide program. The most visible aspect of the program is the Quiet Zone logo posted in businesses across the country to identify those businesses as cellular-phone-free places.
Nokia officials were particularly interested in curbing "cell yell," the habit of talking too loudly on a mobile phone. Microphones on cellular phones are far more sensitive than most users realize, and it's unnecessary to raise your voice above normal conversational tones to be heard.
LetsTalk.com, an online cellular telephone store, interviewed more than 450 cellular telephone users and also conducted person-on-the-street interviews in Washington, D.C., and Atlanta to gauge attitudes toward cellular phones and to create a five-point Cell Phone Bill of Rights. Forty-one percent of the respondents characterized cell phones as a great convenience and time-saver, 29 percent said they were a necessary evil, 26 percent said they don't use their mobile phones, and 3 percent characterized themselves as "addicted" to mobile phones.
When asked whether they favored legislation banning mobile phone use in classrooms, theaters, and restaurants, 57 percent were in favor of the idea and their cell phone use was fairly consistent with that sentiment. Fifty-seven percent said they turn their cell phone off when in a theater, and 43 percent said they do so when in restaurants.
Those favoring legislative bans on mobile phone use while driving a car (45 percent) were a bit on the hypocritical side, since 73 percent of the respondents said they keep their phone on and take calls in the car. When it came to public transportation, respondents were more consistent. Sixty-three percent opposed a ban on mobile phone use in some areas of public transportation, and 50 percent said they keep their phone on and take calls while using public transportation.
In the supermarket, 56 percent said they keep their phone on and take calls, whereas 29 percent turn their cell phone off. Things were more evenly split in the bathroom, where 43 percent said they turn their phones off and 36 percent continue to take calls.
In its oddly named Cell Phone Bill of Rights, "designed to establish protection for all citizens from the rude, uncivil, and discourteous use of cell phones," LetsTalk.com characterizes cell phones as a "technological privilege" and admonishes users to refrain from taking calls while in a theater, to respect restrictions on cell phone use by business establishments and airlines, to be mindful of others' personal space when using a cell phone in public, and to act responsibly when using a cell phone while walking or driving a vehicle.
Hang up and drive!
While it's more an issue of safety than courtesy, perhaps one of the most controversial aspects of cell phone use today is an area in which it first gained popularity--car phones. Although cell phones came into popularity well after his time, the Doors' lead singer, Jim Morrison, had a valid point when he sang the words "Keep your eyes on the road and your hands upon the wheel." According to the New England Journal of Medicine, talking on a cell phone while driving increases the likelihood of an accident fourfold, roughly the same as driving while legally intoxicated.
"It was bad enough when people were shaving and putting on lipstick while driving," says Tom Magliozzi, cohost of National Public Radio's Car Talk. "But now, they're trying to dial the psychic hotline while changing lanes at 65 miles an hour!"
"And La Toya Jackson should be telling them, 'I see an airbag deployment in your future,'" says his brother and cohost Ray Magliozzi.
The two are vocal opponents of cell phone use while driving. In addition to their radio show and syndicated newspaper column, the Magliozzis get their message across by distributing free "Drive now, talk later" bumper stickers. The initial run of 30,000 stickers was exhausted in just two weeks, and more than 60,000 have been distributed to date.
Although legislation against using a cell phone while driving faces an uphill battle in the United States (it has so far seen only limited success in small municipalities), it's gained stronger footholds overseas. In Japan, for instance, drivers face stiff penalties for using a cell phone while driving--especially if they're involved in an accident while doing so.
Although the mobile phone industry by and large opposes legislation limiting or banning cell phone use while driving, many industry players are advocating the use of hands-free devices in the car, such as headsets and speakerphones.
Edwin Powell (edwin@advi.net), who has never used a cell phone, is senior editor of OfficeSolutions.
The Ten Commandments of Cell Phone Etiquette
1. Thou shalt be courteous to those around you for they desireth not to know thy business.
2. Thou shalt not suffer thy cell phone to ring in a theater.
3. Thou shalt not suffer thy cell phone to ring in a restaurant.
4. Thou shalt not suffer thy cell phone to ring during an important meeting.
5. Thou shalt make use of thy cell phone's silent/vibrating ring option in situations where a ringing phone would be disruptive.
6. Thou shalt make full use of thy cell phone's caller ID feature to screen incoming calls.
7. Thou shalt let voice mail take those calls that are not urgent.
8. Thou shalt use text messaging if available.
9. Thou shalt not shout into thy cell phone--its microphone is sufficiently sensitive to pick up normal conversational tones.
10. Thou shalt not use thy cell phone while driving--if thou must make a call, pulleth thy car over or at least useth a headset (in other words, keepeth thine eyes upon the road and thy hands upon the wheel).
By Edwin Powell ; COPYRIGHT 2001 Quality Publishing; COPYRIGHT 2002 Gale Group: http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0FAU/is_3_18/ai_72517455/pg_2
