Reality TV Inspires Research In Mobile Phone Use

from the follow-'em-around dept

Some researchers trying to figure out how kids used mobile phones in different societies realized they could get a better idea by taking a page from reality TV shows and following kids around with a camera crew for a few weeks. They watched carefully to see how kids in different cultures used mobile phones and found that it's not the same everywhere. In the US and the UK, kids see a mobile phone as a rite of passage into adulthood, leading to more freedom from their parents. In China and Brazil, however, kids take their mobile phones more seriously, and see it as a tool they can use to improve their education which could be used later for professional development. The researchers have put this all together as a film which they're showing to businesses and anthropologists, describing their findings. I wonder, though, if there's any effect of following people around for so long with cameras. Everyone knows that the so-called "reality" shows are somewhat fake, since people know they're on camera all the time and respond accordingly. The same could be true of this "study".

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