Say please
Three quarters of American adults think mobile manners are becoming worse compared to just 1 year ago, according to a new survey.
The Intel-sponsored study discovered pet peeves include people texting while driving and using mobiles on honeymoon. It was conducted through December and January surveying 2,000 US adults.
A staggering 9 out of 10 people claimed they have seen people ‘misuse' mobiles. Similarly, over 90 percent of those surveyed said they wished people would be more considerate when using mobiles in public areas, with a fifth admitting to acting badly but carrying on because everyone else is doing the same.
The study found that 1 in 5 adults check their phone before they even get out of bed in the morning and many often commit ‘public displays of technology' as Americans spot an average of 5 mobile 'offenses' every day.
Interestingly apparently the most irksome pet peeves have stayed the same since last year's survey, with 73 percent of people annoyed when people use phones while driving. 65 percent get annoyed by people talking loudly into their mobiles in public places and 28 percent with people wonderingly aimlessly in the street while using their smartphones.
A 2011 report from the Pew Internet & American Life Project reportedly found that 85 percent of US adults own a cell phone, 52 percent own a laptop computer, 4 percent own a tablet, and only 9 percent are without any of them. Apparently Intel is interested in how people use and want to use such technology to help it develop processors.
Genevieve Bell, Intel fellow and head of interaction and experience research, Intel Labs, said: "Mobile technology is still relatively novel...Smart phones, tablets and other mobile devices are really still in their infancy, so it's no surprise that people still struggle with how to best integrate these devices into their lives."
She reckons that while new gadgets like smartphones are becoming a usual part of everyday lives, "we haven't yet worked out for ourselves, our families, communities and societies what all the right kinds of behaviours and expectations will be."
"Our appropriate digital technology behaviours are still embryonic, and it's important for Intel and the entire industry to maintain a dialogue about the way people use technology and our personal relationships with technology as they continue to help shape societal and cultural norms," she added.
While bad manners are nothing new, etiquette guru Anna Post of The Emily Post Institute offered some pearls of wisdom via Intel such as practicing what you preach, giving your full attention to people you are with no matter how well you think you can multitask and considering others around you before making a call or emailing in public.
Finally, she said: "Some places should stay private: Don't use a mobile device while using a restroom." Well quite.
