Smartphones and Our Culture

Smartphones have become a part of our culture.  No generation has been impacted more than Gen Z’s, those born since 1995.  That year is considered a generational marker since that is when the internet became available to everyone.  Gen Z’s are also the first generation to have grown up with the smartphone.  The first i-phone was introduced in 2007, right about the time when Gen Z the first Gen Z’s were in middle school. While it is doubtful every middle school student had a smartphone back then, like they do today, you get the picture.  Today’s teens and young adults have pretty much grown up with a cell phone in their hand.

Pew Research recently released the latest data on smartphone and today’s teens. It is estimated that 95% of high school teens have a personal cellphone.  The survey identified the way those 13-17 year olds use their phones.  A vast majority of cellphone-using teens say their phone is just a way to pass time, with 90% saying they use the phone that way.  A similar large percentage (84%) report they use their phones to connect with other people or to learn new things (83%).  It is not all positive, however.

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Cell phone use is often a “bone of contention” when it comes to teens and the adults in their lives.  There is an ongoing tension when it comes to cell phone use.  Some parents have made their homes cell phone-free zones, while others restrict their usage to certain times; no phones allowed at meal time or during the evening study time.  It is not uncommon for a teen to sleep with their phone next to them, and for them to check their phones during the night. 

As I thought about this I came to the realization that this tension is really nothing new.  During my high school years our home had one telephone line.  When we moved to a new house prior to my junior year my parents decided I needed my own bedroom equipped with an extension phone.  I suspect they probably sometimes regretted that, considering the tension it created: “How can you spend all day at school with them and then come home and talk for hours at night?” I recall my mother saying. 

There was another disturbing trend that came out of the Pew Research study.  Many teens (43%) admit to using their cellphone to avoid social contact.  While a smartphone is a great way to connect with people, it is also a way to avoid “face to face” interaction.  Avoiding social interaction was much more common among girls (54%), than boys (31%).  A sad reality is that while many teenage girls want to accumulate a long list of friends on social media they often avoid the intimate relationships that can truly be long-term and life-changing.