Why Text?
by Nancy Broden
The use of text messaging has been on the rise since it was widely adopted by teenagers in Europe and the UK around 1999. Originally conceived as a message service that would allow wireless operators to inform their own customers of network issues, it started attracting its teenage legions who found texting to be a cheaper way to communicate than voice calls.
If watching the pennies were the main reason for texting instead of calling, surely texting would have decreased in popularity as wireless carriers started milking this cash cow. Instead the use of SMS has grown only more popular, with nearly 40% of US mobile phone owners now texting according to M:Metrics latest statistics. It is also extending beyond teenagers to a broader audience as it begins to fill more needs for more people.
So why text? The subject has been of interest to researchers for as long as teenagers have been using SMS. Studies highlight that the widespread adoption of mobile phones has finally put a private communication resource in the hands of nearly every teen. They no longer need to worry about a parent or sibling knowing of or eavesdropping on their social communications via the household landline or family PC. Having a mobile phone means being able to communicate at any time and any place with privacy. It is often inconvenient or downright impossible to have voice-based conversations late at night, during class, at the family dinner table or the many other situations that teens feel the need to reach out to their friends. Texting permits this frequent, furtive communication.
Even when voice calls are possible, teens - and adults in increasing numbers - prefer texting to calling. Frequently the reason given is that texting is “easier”: it is perceived by sender and recipient as “less formal” and “quicker” than a voice call. No doubt the 160 character limit and device keypad restrictions contribute to this perception since they tend to lead to short, succinct exchanges. More importantly, many people, and teens in particular, feel that spoken conversations are awkward because they are structured, real-time exchanges whose interpretation is complicated by the pace of the conversation and the tone of voice of speakers. Spoken conversation also requires the speakers’ full attention for the duration of a call, something we are increasingly loathe to give for any length of time.
Does this mean text will replace voice? Not at all. Mobile devices are still primarily used to place and receive voice calls. But we increasingly reserve voice calls for communicating with family members and business associates, with whom some formality is expected. The ongoing popularity of SMS - or whatever mobile messaging platform SMS morphs into in the future - seems assured since texting increasingly fills psychological as well as practical needs for many of us.
