Voice or text

The development of mobile devices and the rapidly growing popularity of instant messengers predetermined another conflict between users of different generations and temperament: the choice between calls or messages. We are trying to figure out the question.

Voice or text

The catalyst for this material was a publication marked by someone from the circle of acquaintances / subscribers / those to whom I subscribed to Facebook, in which the author quite emotionally says that he hates receiving calls when there is such a beautiful the ability to write to one of the messengers prudently installed in the smartphone. Among the arguments are personal convenience: it is much more convenient for a person, it is not very comfortable for him to communicate with people, especially strangers, in a voice. And it's already 2017, why do we need these calls? As proof of the validity of his position, the author gives a link to a 'hot' topic from one of the editors of The Verge resource. Unfortunately, it was not possible to save the publication in time, but I think there is something to discuss here even without citation.

Voice or text

In fact, we are facing the next stage in the development of the 'call or write' dilemma, so familiar to us since the transition from landline phones to mobile phones. And if before this transition the same choice divided the further scenario into a phone and a pager, then in the case of mobile devices there was no such need. For the most part, the decision was made based on the personal characteristics of communication, as well as the tariff that the user had. Short messages were transmitted by voice in the first three seconds, followed by the termination of the call that did not have time to be charged. Subsequently, more and more users began to use text messaging, and then switched to IM clients. The latter have evolved into a variety of modern instant messengers and have introduced a certain discord in the already discordant ranks of users of various devices based on several major operating systems. Let's leave this confrontation aside, we are interested in the old dispute, but in a new conjuncture. I will not impose my point of view on anyone; instead, I would prefer to discuss the theses put forward in the framework of such debates.

Violation of personal space

Psychologists still cannot agree on whether a person becomes more socially active using gadgets, or, on the contrary, withdraws into himself, preferring the virtual world to real interlocutors. Apparently, this implies the position that calls, even from familiar people, take a person out of the comfort zone. This, in principle, seems to be not so bad, but it is perceived by the addressee not entirely positively and favorably. The reason for this may be the fear of disclosing information during a call, it can be heard and used in some way against a person. It makes no sense to deny that some people quite boldly conduct their telephone conversations and thus take a certain risk, but in the overwhelming majority of cases, such dialogues do not carry any super important information, you can not be afraid for it, unless it bears a very personal character.

But on the other hand, if someone decided to call you, then with a certain degree of probability there is some reason for this. And regardless of his motives, I think it is wrong to drop the call and ask the caller to write if there is an opportunity to talk. If the person deemed it necessary to spend his time with you, then, at least, reciprocal courtesy will give him a couple of minutes, even if the interlocutor is unfamiliar and in the end the conversation will not bring any benefit. If you are actually uncomfortable receiving calls regardless of the time of day and mood, then the way out may be to indicate this circumstance when exchanging contacts. It seems to me that anyone is capable of this, and such openness will be perceived by the interlocutor, who ultimately prefers to write.

'Pseudo-introverts'

It is often said in arguments for messaging that the user finds this mode of communication more acceptable because he or she is an introvert. There is a certain substitution of concepts, in my opinion, they confuse introversion with co-operation, mild behavioral disorders or social anxiety, when the same social norms and behavioral scenarios can pass absolutely painlessly for some people, while causing a negative reaction and / or inconvenience in others . Again, such a reaction is not something out of the ordinary, each of us has cognitive and interactive features. But, due to circumstances, they are often suppressed and the behavior is brought to the generally accepted, so as not to cause an unwanted conflict. There are scenarios when it is impossible to ignore some situations, so you have to step over yourself.

Yes, the psychological makeup of character is a very complex and purely individual mosaic, there is no getting away from it, but the communicative culture dictates to us the norms of behavior and communication literally from the first step to the threshold of kindergarten, for the most part the mosaic begins to form at this stage. I believe that an adult and an adequate person should try to overcome such inconveniences for himself in order to achieve his goals, and not refer to his own characteristics and force others to adapt to them without subordination between these people. Plus, I don’t think that a real introvert will become like this, in fact, to the entire network to declare this kind of character, either a person exaggerates his sociopathy, or deliberately deceives readers. Well, showing your colleagues and business partners that you have behavioral “cockroaches” is not at all correct.

Business etiquette and free time

'But it is more convenient for me to answer an email or text message than to discuss with a voice! There is time to think about what you want to answer, but the interlocutor will not be able to understand my real emotions and it is more likely that he will do what I would like! '. What if not a position, but first of all it will not be entirely honest from the point of view of negotiations. That is why the heads of self-respecting companies and their shareholders, whenever possible, gather for personal meetings or at least video conferences, and do not exchange stickers in Telegram and do not write in WhatsApp. By the way, in the latter, as was correctly noted in the comments on the recent material of Konstantin Ivanov, there is an opportunity to delete or edit messages, which is absolutely unacceptable for business negotiations and the image of a person who seems to have given tacit consent to support business etiquette, but chose this way 'cheat'.

Voice or text

And not every self-respecting businessman will agree to correspondence in messengers, especially when it comes to serious issues and large financial flows. For such people, time is worth its weight in gold; a lot can depend on a quickly made decision. Not to lose because of your unwillingness to communicate in person or at least in the voice of beneficial partners? Returning to the topic of free time, one should separate business correspondence and the ordinary 'How are you?' Undoubtedly, in the second case, it is very convenient that you can reply to the message later, keeping the line of dialogue and not offending the person. The opposite situation: if in the process of work requiring concentration on a task, an acquaintance calls you 'just to chat' and you have already answered the phone, then getting out of such a situation without unpleasant consequences can be quite difficult.

Fathers and Sons

An important aspect is the technological gap between generations. The elderly people of our time for the most part managed to get used to landline phones, got used to them and preferred to stop there, they are completely satisfied with this method. Therefore, they hardly perceive new technologies and do not keep pace with their lightning-fast development, often for no apparent reason falling out of communication with their younger relatives or close people. Of course, there are many exceptions to this, people are learning with success, and not without the help of children and grandchildren, and now we are talking with grandparents in Skype and Facetime, asking what they downloaded new to their iPod and discussing new series. But you should understand that it cost them more effort than us, millennials and people of a relatively young digital generation.

Is it really easier to prove to the older generation that it is more convenient for you to write than to choose the time and call yourself?

Information fatigue

Users such as the author of the mentioned publication can be understood. We are all forced to deal with the ever-increasing flow of information 'pouring' from all sides. It so happens that a user who is tired of this media cannonade is literally not physically ready for an adequate dialogue on the phone and is forced to miss or reject the call. Not everyone has the necessary internal resources. But there is a way out for this, namely, limiting unwanted web activity during working hours or during those periods when it is necessary to focus on important negotiations. Of course, here one cannot do without systemic self-control, which many occasionally neglect, but it is in it that the key to success, it seems to me, is practically in any work. Memes and interesting links will wait, there are no prerequisites for the disappearance of the Internet either, but there are moments that require full inclusion and activity. In the end, it is not for this that man went through such a stage of evolution to give in to such 'difficulties'.

Instead of output

Modern scenarios of communication with the real world and virtual environment require us to be flexible and able to adapt to trends, as well as use them profitably in our lives. At the same time, we must not forget that other people can also depend on our choice and are not at all obliged to find themselves in uncomfortable situations for themselves through our fault. Let's think not only about ourselves, but also about those with whom we cooperate and communicate, meet in everyday life and get acquainted on the net. And the choice between voice and text should not become a determining factor in these relationships, such a conflict should lose its relevance.

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