Mobile Phones – A New language
A group of students from Chesterfield College unearthed some interesting findings when they conducted research into the way people across different age groups use their mobile phones.
The A level English Language students, currently studying in their final year, conducted the research as part of their investigation into the changes in Language and Technology.
In the last 10 years the mobile phone has become a very important addition to society with 75% of the UKs population owning at least one.
An even bigger surprise is that due to a combination of parents’ piece of mind and the latest in fashionable handsets, 25% of primary school children have a phone of their own.The students involved in the study focussed their investigation on the Short Messaging Service (SMS) and how users communicate using ‘text talk’.
Mandy Brooks, an English lecturer at the College said, “We wanted to dig below the surface description of text talk to see what kind of social functions might drive the popular demand for mobile phones.”
Originally designed for business use, text messaging really took off in the late 90’s and early 00’s as a way for friends, parents and partners to stay in touch. SMS messaging forced users to become creative with language to condense a question or statement into a limited number of character spaces. Mandy Brooks whose article on the subject was published in the December 2006 issue of Emagazine, a national publication for A Level English and Media, commented, “Lexical differences in text talk are easy to spot, and research has mapped such changes as the phonetic spelling of words, the use of emoticons to express mood :-), and number phonemes in abbreviated forms like CUL8R (see you later).”
As part of their investigation, the students looked at the way the older generation use the technology. The study found that many are abandoning the traditional methods of grammatically correct sentences in favour of non-standard spelling, going against everything they were taught as children and in effect, breaking the rules of English.
In youngsters, the students found that the text message had opened a door to new ways of flirting to avoid face-to-face contact and embarrassment. In a separate part of the survey, 80% of those questioned believe that texting saves time compared to calling somebody, but because of the speed and ease of sending a text message, 60% agreed that the service does not save them any money. For the traditionalists, it may be refreshing to know that despite world domination of the mobile phone, 80% of those who took part would still favour a spoken conversation over text message.
The study raised many other questions about the future of communication, avenues which many of the students plan to explore further within future projects.
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