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The mobile phone, perpetual contact and time pressure

Author

Listed:
  • Michael Bittman

    (University of New England, michael.bittman@une.edu.au)

  • Judith E. Brown

    (University of New England, jude.brown@une.edu.au)

  • Judy Wajcman

    (London School of Economics and Political Science, J.Wajcman@lse.ac.uk)

Abstract

Mobile phone services are now universally diffused, creating the possibility of perpetual contact, regardless of time and location. Many think the impossibility of being ‘out of touch’ leads to increased time pressure. In addition to claims that the mobile phone has led to harried leisure, others have argued that perpetual contact extends work into the home or intensifies work in other ways. In this article, these issues are explored using survey data employing some novel methodologies — combining a questionnaire with logs of phone traffic recovered from respondents’ handsets and a purpose-designed time-diary of technology use. Overall, results show that mobile phone use is not associated with more harried leisure. Fears of work intruding into home life appear to be exaggerated. However, there is some evidence that frequent use of mobiles during working hours is associated with work intensification, at least among men.

Suggested Citation

  • Michael Bittman & Judith E. Brown & Judy Wajcman, 2009. "The mobile phone, perpetual contact and time pressure," Work, Employment & Society, British Sociological Association, vol. 23(4), pages 673-691, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:woemps:v:23:y:2009:i:4:p:673-691
    DOI: 10.1177/0950017009344910
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Ivory, Chris & Casey, Rebecca & Watson, Kayleigh, 2016. "The role of mobile ICT in repair worker communities of practice," 27th European Regional ITS Conference, Cambridge (UK) 2016 148676, International Telecommunications Society (ITS).
    2. Killian Mullan & Judy Wajcman, 2019. "Have Mobile Devices Changed Working Patterns in the 21st Century? A Time-diary Analysis of Work Extension in the UK," Work, Employment & Society, British Sociological Association, vol. 33(1), pages 3-20, February.
    3. Siddharth Vedula & Phillip H. Kim, 2018. "Marching to the beat of the drum: the impact of the pace of life in US cities on entrepreneurial work effort," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 50(3), pages 569-590, March.
    4. Jinbi Yang & Chunxiao Yin, 2020. "Exploring Boundary Conditions of the Impact of Accessibility to Mobile Networks on Employees’ Perceptions of Presenteeism: from Both Individual and Social Perspectives," Information Systems Frontiers, Springer, vol. 22(4), pages 881-895, August.
    5. Harvey Humphrey & Edmund Coleman-Fountain, 2024. "Creating Time for LGBT+ Disabled Youth: Co-production Outside Chrononormativity," Sociological Research Online, , vol. 29(1), pages 233-242, March.
    6. Eva Thulin & Bertil Vilhelmson & Martina Johansson, 2019. "New Telework, Time Pressure, and Time Use Control in Everyday Life," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(11), pages 1-17, May.
    7. Helen Wells & Gemma Briggs & Leanne Savigar-Shaw, 2021. "The Inconvenient Truth About Mobile Phone Distraction: Understanding the Means, Motive and Opportunity for Driver Resistance to Legal and Safety Messages [‘Changes in Driver Behaviour as a Function," The British Journal of Criminology, Centre for Crime and Justice Studies, vol. 61(6), pages 1503-1520.
    8. Francis Green & Alan Felstead & Duncan Gallie & Golo Henseke, 2022. "Working Still Harder," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 75(2), pages 458-487, March.
    9. Gregor Murray & Christian Lévesque & Glenn Morgan & Nicolas Roby, 2020. "Disruption and re-regulation in work and employment: from organisational to institutional experimentation," Transfer: European Review of Labour and Research, , vol. 26(2), pages 135-156, May.

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