Mobile Identity: Youth, Identity, and Mobile Communication Media

Gitte Stald (2008) writes a very interesting article discussing multiple relationships or characteristics of youth in Denmark and their mobile phone devices. Specific topics addressed include physical availability, experience of presence, mobile phones to keep personal logs, and social norms related to phones. I found myself asking questions many questions while reading the sections about physical availability and experience of presence.

I understand that mobile phones are part of youth identity, and I do not necessarily think phones are a bad thing. I do, however, think at times youth attachment to phones might be somewhat out of hand. The fact that some teens state that they cannot ‘live’ without their phone or ‘can’t turn it off’ causes me to worry. As I read this, I kept thinking, “It is just a phone… only a phone.”  Stald (2008) states that some youth feel if they turned their phone off they would either miss something important or not be available to friends who might need them. It sounds as if these youth are very insecure or codependent on their friends (and phone).  It seems at times that these devices which were meant to make life easier and a person less tied-down, are actually causing stress and challenges. I personally do not think it is healthy for anyone to always ‘be on’; down time is important for ‘recharging’ and it appears that many youth, at least based on this article, are not getting that.

The Buddhist philosophy of mindfulness or being present also came to mind while I read this article. The idea behind mindfulness is that by quieting the mind, being present in all that is going on around you, you will become more aware. Awareness brings about an inner calm; something all of us can use from time to time. Stald (2008) describes the idea(s) of presence to include a physical presence and a presence through connection via phones.  I was pleased when I read, “It is simply not possible to be equally present in two places at the same time” (Stahl, 2008, p. 154). I try to explain that to my college students all the time; if they are texting in class, which many of them (try to) do, they are not able to fully comprehend and be present in class at the same time. 

While I think that mobile phones are ‘handy’ especially when I need my husband to stop off at the store for something I forgot, I worry that youth of today rely too heavily upon them.  Stald (2008) mentioned that to some youth their phone is an extension of their body.  I truly wonder if this is a positive healthy idea.
Below is a link to some current information and data about teens and texting which I found to be interesting.

http://blog.nielsen.com/nielsenwire/online_mobile/under-aged-texting-usage-and-actual-cost/

Stald, G. (2008). Mobile Identity: Youth, identity, and mobile communication media. In D.Buckingham (Ed.), Youth, Identity, and Digital Media.  Cambridge, MA: MacArthur Foundation Series (pp. 143-164).  Doi:10.1162/dmal.9780262524834.143

Social networks and teens. . .these two topics go hand-in-hand in present day. Teens spend large amounts of time ‘hanging-out’ on social network sites (SNS) like MySpace and Facebook.  But why?  Boyd  (2008) discusses this in her article, Why Youth *heart* Social Network Sites: The Role of Networked Publics in Teenage Social Life. She examines who is on SNS and why they are there.

I have always been interested in the relationship between culture and socio-economic status as it relates to youth and education. Boyd (2008) found that urban Black teens are just as likely to join a social network site as White teens from wealthier backgrounds; however, their time on these sites may vary due to limited accessibility to the internet.  After reading this I was left with the question of accessibility and participation from other groups Boyd failed to mention; for example whether poor rural students of any race/ethnicity, Latino students, youth who live along the U.S. boarder, or immigrant non-native English speakers participate as much as Black and White youth she mentioned?

Prior to reading this article, I had not truly considered the reasons teens flock to SNS. Boyd’s  (2008) explanations made complete sense to me. Public spaces which historically were places for teens to socialize have more recently become off-limits due to public fear. Places such as drive-in movie theatres and malls either do not exist anymore or have limited teen’s access to be with one another; in addition, teen’s lack mobility since many cannot drive which also limits where they can go. With these restrictions in place, teens have turned to the internet which, for many, is readily available at home, school and with smart-phones, anywhere they have phone service. Teens can socialize and as Boyd (2008) found ‘hang-out’ or ‘lurk’ with their friends on sites such as MySpace and Facebook.

Furthermore, most teens state they are online because everyone else is; however, there is a small contingent of students who opt-out of SNS because everyone else is there (Boyd, 2008). The majority of teens online are there because they do not want to be the outsider or miss something important that could affect their social status. In effect, it appears that social status related to school has extended itself beyond the classroom and hallways and onto these social network sites.  I am very curious to see what the future holds for SNS and teens.  

Here are two websites related to this topic.  The first is simply statistic from Facebook on who its users are.  The second relates more directly to teens online and the demographics for this.  I find this interesting and thought you might too. 

http://www.facebook.com/press/info.php?statistics

http://www.danah.org/papers/essays/ClassDivisions.html

Boyd, D. (2008). Why youth heart social networking sites: The role of networked publics in teenage social life. In D. Buckingham (Ed.), Youth Identity and Digital Media (pp. 119-142). Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press.