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The mobile phone and socialization: the consequences of mobile phone use in transitions from family to school life of U.S. college students
Descriptive
TypeOfResource
Text
TitleInfo
Title
The mobile phone and socialization: the consequences of mobile phone use in transitions from family to school life of U.S. college students
Identifier
(type = hdl)
http://hdl.rutgers.edu/1782.2/rucore10001600001.ETD.13455
Identifier
ETD_189
Identifier
(type = doi)
doi:10.7282/T3V1258M
Language
LanguageTerm
(authority = ISO 639-3:2007);
(type = text)
English
Genre
(authority = marcgt)
theses
Subject
(authority = RUETD)
Topic
Communication, Information and Library Studies
Subject
(authority = ETD-LCSH)
Topic
Cellular telephones
Subject
(authority = ETD-LCSH)
Topic
Social skills
Subject
(authority = ETD-LCSH)
Topic
Socialization
Abstract
(type = abstract)
Research on the consequences of information and communication technology (ICT) use finds that ICTs, such as the mobile phone (e.g., Ling, 2004), the Internet (e.g., Katz & Rice, 2002), and the television (e.g., Bandura, 1967), increase people's socialization skills. Scholars (e.g., Ling, 2004) have explored how younger teens use the mobile phone to create their external social networks from home. Yet while there have been many studies of younger teens, a gap remains in understanding how older teens (in this case, college students) use the mobile phone as a tool for continuing socialization relative to their friends and family.
This study seeks to understand how mobile phone use fits in to the relationship between student and parent and especially if mobile phone use might increase college students' dependency on (or other forms of involvement with) their parents. The data to inform this analysis are derived from three focus group interviews (that included a total of 40 undergraduate students), surveys (that included a total of 514 undergraduate students), and eight in-depth interviews.
A combination of qualitative and quantitative approaches used in this study showed that the mobile phone was an important ICT in connecting college students with their social networks. Another important use was to seek information from within a social network. One-third of the participants in the survey reported that they asked for help from family members while they were at school. In conclusion, at least insofar as the participants this study are concerned, the mobile phone is helpful for students to gain socialization skills, coordinate with their families, and remain vibrant participants in a social network. Perhaps most interestingly, the research shows that contrary to initial expectations that the mobile phone would lead to isolation and independence of young people from their families, it appears to have had the opposite effect, that is, it seems to increase the involvement and socialization of students with their families.
This study seeks to understand how mobile phone use fits in to the relationship between student and parent and especially if mobile phone use might increase college students' dependency on (or other forms of involvement with) their parents. The data to inform this analysis are derived from three focus group interviews (that included a total of 40 undergraduate students), surveys (that included a total of 514 undergraduate students), and eight in-depth interviews.
A combination of qualitative and quantitative approaches used in this study showed that the mobile phone was an important ICT in connecting college students with their social networks. Another important use was to seek information from within a social network. One-third of the participants in the survey reported that they asked for help from family members while they were at school. In conclusion, at least insofar as the participants this study are concerned, the mobile phone is helpful for students to gain socialization skills, coordinate with their families, and remain vibrant participants in a social network. Perhaps most interestingly, the research shows that contrary to initial expectations that the mobile phone would lead to isolation and independence of young people from their families, it appears to have had the opposite effect, that is, it seems to increase the involvement and socialization of students with their families.
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xiii, 152 pages
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Note
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Ph.D.
Note
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Includes bibliographical references (p. 127-138).
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Chen
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Yi-Fan
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Yi-Fan Chen
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Katz
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James
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chair
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James E. Katz
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Keith
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Susan
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Susan Keith
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Pavlik
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John
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Advisory Committee
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John V. Pavlik
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Ling
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Richard
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outside member
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Advisory Committee
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Richard S. Ling
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Rutgers University
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Graduate School-New Brunswick
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OriginInfo
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2007
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2007
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NjNbRU
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Graduate School - New Brunswick Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Identifier
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rucore19991600001
Genre
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ETD doctoral
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Rights
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The author owns the copyright to this work.
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Open
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Yi-Fan Chen
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Rutgers University. Graduate School-New Brunswick
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Non-exclusive ETD license
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Author Agreement License
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I hereby grant to the Rutgers University Libraries and to my school the non-exclusive right to archive, reproduce and distribute my thesis or dissertation, in whole or in part, and/or my abstract, in whole or in part, in and from an electronic format, subject to the release date subsequently stipulated in this submittal form and approved by my school. I represent and stipulate that the thesis or dissertation and its abstract are my original work, that they do not infringe or violate any rights of others, and that I make these grants as the sole owner of the rights to my thesis or dissertation and its abstract. I represent that I have obtained written permissions, when necessary, from the owner(s) of each third party copyrighted matter to be included in my thesis or dissertation and will supply copies of such upon request by my school. I acknowledge that RU ETD and my school will not distribute my thesis or dissertation or its abstract if, in their reasonable judgment, they believe all such rights have not been secured. I acknowledge that I retain ownership rights to the copyright of my work. I also retain the right to use all or part of this thesis or dissertation in future works, such as articles or books.
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