Teenagers obsessed with mobile phones: Survey

NEW DELHI - Teenagers are obsessed with mobile phones and carry them to schools, tution centres and other public places, a study released here Sunday said.

The study, conducted by the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham), attributed this to socio-economic factors such as excess pampering by parents, easy access to pocket money, absence of parental monitoring and urbanisation.

The survey “Toy to Tool” found that 88 percent of adolescents aged between 15 and 18 years possess mobile phones. Over 66 percent of them between 16 and 18 years want to carry mobile phones to schools, it said.

The survey, conducted in Mumbai, Goa, Cochin, Chennai, Hyderabad, Indore, Patna, Pune, Ahmedabad, Delhi, Chandigarh and Dehradun, interviewed 2,000 parents and 2,500 students. It observed that many children were using their phones not only for talking but also for sending SMSes and MMSes and chatting.

Assocham secretary general D.S. Rawat said that despite school structures and policies, the ground reality is that more than two-third of teens confessed that they use cell phones inside the school premises when they should not.

The survey states that if the tendency of increased dependence on mobile phones prevails among teenagers, it could develop into their habitual addiction.

Mobile phone handsets are taking centre stage in the lives of metropolitan teenagers, who often send or receive dozens of emails a day while eating, attending school or even taking a bath, highlighted the survey.

The survey said the teenagers who excessively use cell phones are more prone to abnormalities like disrupted sleep, restlessness, stress and fatigue.

The study found that 71 percent of teens want their handsets to be equipped with MP3 gadgets to play music, while 70 percent want camera phones. They use their phones to send emails to their friends, to read books, listen to music and surf the internet.

Over 90 percent of the parents said they bought mobile phones for their children so that their kids indulge in their own world and not disturb them.

“In fact, they are also concerned that their children should not mix with bad company but play with mobile handsets,” the survey said.

Parents also find it convenient to contact their kids any time through the mobile phones. However, some of them are not fully aware of the evils of a cell phone and they feel that their children be allowed to use a handset with them.

However, 56 percent of the parents felt that students should not be allowed to carry mobile phones, especially during classroom sessions.

According to the survey, even the telecom operators have launched low priced vouchers starting from Rs.10 as their marketing strategy to attract children who only send and receive messages.

The survey said that around 20 messages were sent by each student per day while 56 percent of teenage girls almost text 50 messages every day.