In the 1980's, the personal computer became the technological advancement that changed our lives. It allowed us to collect, store, and analyze large amounts of data with ease. In the 1990's, the Internet gave us the mechanism by which we could share massive amounts of information with one another. As we begin the 21st century, the Smartphone has quenched thirst for instantaneous connectivity. The growth in Smartphone use has been phenomenal. The CNN reports that 269.9 million Smartphones were purchased internationally in 2010 and that in 2011 a half a billion Smartphones may be purchased worldwide (Weintraub, 2010). Nielsen projects that Smartphones will become the majority of cell phones in use by the end of 2011.
Morgan Stanley Research forecasts that Smartphone sales will exceed those of the PC in 2012 (Brownlow, 2011). The Smartphone has many more functions and uses than the traditional cell phone. The Smartphone allows its owners to e-mail, surf the web, play music and games, and perform a variety of other functions. Google now has $1 billion in annual mobile advertising revenues and U. S. mobile advertising revenues are expected to reach $1 billion in 2011 (Global, 2011). The explosion in the Smartphone industry has created a completely new venue for marketers. The growth in mobile marketing is undeniable and it is imperative that marketers understand this emerging industry and how they may use it to reach their customers. Mobile phones are increasingly becoming the ever-present penetration and transformation of everyday social practices and space.
Together we are drawn to the learning students‟ outreach possibilities inherent in Smartphone applications such as Facebook, Twitter and MySpace. The functional value of a Smartphone is promoting students‟ consumption in mobile technology and experience in learning via the mobile devices. This study examines whether mobile phones and their capabilities are useful for students‟ learning, the impacts on students using mobile phone capabilities at a certain time, and the learning environment in which students prefer to use them. The new mobile phones‟ functions include camera, computer applications, music player, GPS (Global Positioning System), and gaming features.
These mobile phones are no longer only a tool for communication but a necessary instrument of individuals‟ social and work life. In developed and developing countries most people have adopted the use of mobile phones in learning processes. They are an attractive tool for communication and interpersonal relations, and have become increasingly used in an educational context. Some people tend to seem depressed, lost and isolated without their mobile phones.
Research Problem
Everywhere we could see mobile phones in the world. Sri Lanka is not only exception to that culture. Nowadays there is a new trend among youngsters, using “Smart mobile phones”. This trend makes them in to a different culture level. When observing the buyer behaviour of mobile phone; clearly it shows youngsters in Sri Lanka most prefer to buy Smart mobile phones. The prices becoming cheaper can be one of the reason behind that but there are some main reasons that they addicted to the community networks such as Facebook, Twitter, Myspace, Instagram, Foursquare and some more. Some youngsters addicted to gaming with the extraordinary features that smart phone apps are giving. Smart phone application developers are giving such amazing experiences to the users which they can’t realize in the personal computers even. However smart phones help people make their life easy and it is generating a new path in the communication process. It is making easy many businesses and exchange information through Email.
Moreover smart phones led a main role in the sense of news updates frequently. These are some great advantages of smart phones in this modern world. There are many arguments going on youngsters and about their career developments as the shadow of these smart phones. Sometimes there can be positive and wealthy factors of smart phones but in some cases it shows the worst views of it also. Some arguments say; smart phones are making life easy, it helps youngsters to develop their career and connect with world and to update them easily.
As like that some arguments: it is degenerated the youngsters, cultural spoil, they are not concentrating in their studies and other career development activities reason of extra fitting contents of Smartphone which can turn youngsters away from the right destinations. This research project is going to research about “How smart mobile phones impact on professional and career development of youngsters in Sri Lanka”. This research is finding the positives and negative impact on smart phones. It also finds the mobile usage pattern of youngsters in Sri Lanka and different between ordinary mobile phone users and smart mobile users.
Research Questions
Are smart phones helping youngsters to develop their profession and career? Are smart phones reducing performance of youngsters in career and professional development? Why youngsters are using smart phones most of the time?
What are the roles smart phones play in social influences? 1.3. Research Objectives To determine whether mobile phones have a positive or negative impact on youngsters on their career and professional development. To determine how smart phones turn away youngsters from concern in their development To determine which are the features youngsters using mostly to develop their career and professions To determine Social influences of youngsters through smart phones
Literature review
Define career development
Career development is the lifelong process of managing progression in learning and work. The quality of this process significantly determines the nature and quality of individuals’ lives: the kind of people they become, the sense of purpose they have, the income at their disposal. It also determines the social and economic contribution they make to the communities and societies of which they are part (Prof. Tonny Watts OBE) Define professional development
Professional Development is the continuous process of acquiring new knowledge and skills that relate to one’s profession, job responsibilities, or work environment. It plays a key role in maintaining trained, informed, and motivated employees, regardless of job classification. (Austin community college, Texas, ACC academy) Define Smartphone
A Smartphone is a mobile communications device that uses an identifiable open OS. An open OS is supported by third-party applications written by a notable developer community. Third-party applications can be installed and removed, and they can be created for the device’s OS and application programming interfaces (APIs). Alternatively, developers must be able to access APIs through a discrete layer such as Java. The OS must support a multitasking environment and user interface that can handle multiple applications simultaneously. For example, it can display e-mail while playing music.
Theories applied
Transformative learning theory (Jack Mezirow) The study of transformational learning emerged with the work of Jack Mezirow (1981, 1994, and 1997). Transformational learning is defined as learning that induces more far-reaching change in the learner than other kinds of learning, especially learning experiences which shape the learner and produce a significant impact, or paradigm shift, which affects the learner's subsequent experiences Interaction Theory
The theory used to guide this study is the Interaction Theory. It is the study of individuals and how they act within society. Interaction theory grew in the latter half of the 20th Century and has become one of the dominant sociological perspectives in the world today.
Self concept theory of career development (Donald Super)
One of Donald Super’s greatest contributions to career development has been his emphasis on the importance of the development of self-concept. According to Super, self-concept changes over time and develops as a result of experience. As such, career development is lifelong. Key Literature
Several studies have investigated the demographic characteristics of Smartphone users. Males (53%) are more likely to have a Smartphone than females (47%) (Entner, 2010) Hispanic Americans and Asians are slightly more likely to have a Smartphone than what their share of the population would indicate (Entner, 2010). The Smartphone user tends to be younger than the general cell phone audience. The U.S. Smartphone ownership is skewed towards persons ages 25 – 44, while the mobile audience overall remains comparatively flat across age groups (Age, 2010). Regarding Smartphone functions, young people indicate a higher satisfaction level with texting than older people (Balakrishnan and Yeow, 2007).
A study conducted by Scarborough Research found that adults in the U. S. who use the text-messaging feature on their cell phone are 49% more likely than the average American to be between age 18-24, 14% more likely to be Hispanic and 24% more likely to be African American (Texting, 2008). Mobile email users tend to be 18-44 years old, self-employed or employed full time, affluent, and highly educated. Seventy-two percent of mobile email users have an annual household income of $100,000 or more, though the decreasing cost of Smartphone and the launch of new devices like the iPhone have begun to attract less-affluent groups (Smartphone, 2011).
Cell phones, smart phones, PDAs and all Wireless Mobile Devices (WDMs) are all part of the ever-growing world of wireless connectivity with the smart phone quickly becoming the main tool in the always on – always connected society of today (Cockrane & Bateman, 2010). It appears that because of its portability and increasing power, these handheld, pocket devices, are making their way into the classroom. Not only are the students bringing their handhelds to class, but instructors and teachers are as well, which, in turn, is influencing mobile technologies to make their presence known in the field of education (Stockwell, 2010 p. 95). Their ever-increasing presence in the academic setting is making them “ripe for utilization as part of formal and informal learning experiences” (Dieterle, Dede, & Schrier, 2007, p. 37).
Even though cell phones, with their added smart technologies, are a recent development, they are being researched by many looking for ways to implement them into the pedagogy of education and their impact on both education and ultimately student achievement. However, because of their relatively short existence in the education field, there are no long term studies providing conclusive evidence of the actual impact cell phones are having. According to UK survey; Young people are now much more likely to prefer to read on a computer screen rather than a printed book or magazine [BBC News - Young people 'prefer to read on screen'. 2013]. Of those surveyed, 52% preferred to read on screen compared with 32% who preferred print, with the remainder having no opinion or preferring not to read at all. About a third of readers were reading fiction on screen, with higher levels for those using tablet computers or e-readers. And 23% of the youngsters read fiction on their smart phones.
This makes a good response of improve reading enthusiasts among youngsters. Allowing smart phones in a high school class room environment could raise some issues of attention if not properly supervised. There could be some positive outcomes for them as well. Allowing students to use phones to access the schools networks could help the student’s research while in class at a faster rate than needing to go home read the material and return the following day with the answers. In past youngster much don’t like to go to libraries and reading books. With the help of Smartphone youngsters tend to read books in phones. It seems a good move, however youngsters turned back towards books and they really try to get something.
Along with formal learning and formal testing, cell phone use is proving to be a valuable tool for the informal learning situation (Sandberg, Maris, & de Geus, 2011). Santos and Ali (2012) discuss the use of cell phone by medical students who used mobile phones to access needed information and were able to review the content and the notes, while on training (p.191). While it is becoming more common for many of today’s students to use cell phones for tasks such as texting and Internet access, they are exploring ways to use them in many other situations. Students are downloading audio and video lectures and podcasts, editing text documents, accessing e-mail and web content as well as using their phone for mass storage (Corbeil & Valdes-Corbeil, 2007). While it seems students’ recording of their own voice and video are not so popular, they do invite opportunities to access information, read e-books, listen to audio files, and use their phone’s administrative tools such as calendars and contact lists, which support their informal learning (Santos & Ali, 2012).
When asked how often they use their phones to support informal learning activities, students reported they interact with their classmates on an average of 73% of their phones usage time and use administrative tools such as calendar application on an average of 73% (Santos & Ali, 2012, p.195). The topics of discussion during these informal sessions included such things as course assignments, projects, questions, information and clarification of issues which demonstrates the informal learning and its impact on the students’ formal learning as well. A survey by leading job seeking website [Thunder cover recruiter (Infographic).2013] says; 86% of jobseekers who have a Smartphone would use it to search for a job, 65% of those would search for available positions, 55% would receive job alerts, 47% would apply to a few jobs, and 45% would track application status. This trend turns youngsters using smart phones along the rapid changes of this competitive world.
Applicants (youngsters) would apply in few seconds for a job and they receive reply at instantly as well. Daily, cell phone ringtones disrupt meetings, training sessions, and productivity in the workplace. Depending on the ringtone, it can also be a source of embarrassment for the owner, coworker, or employer. Sadly, the literature review revealed that this is not a new problem “Since employees started bringing their cell phones to work...coworkers [have been annoyed] with loud ringtones” (Guerin, 2009, p. 133). This claim is further supported by a2007 Randstad USA survey of workplace pet peeves, which found “loud noises (e.g. speaker phones, loud talkers, cell phone ring tones) to be the fifth biggest workplace pet peeve. If ringtones weren’t distracting enough, many cell phone users have loud conversations, whether they’re yelling into their phone because of static or they’re reluctant to trust the microphone. According to a 2006 Pew Survey, “eighty-two percent of Americans and eighty-six percent of cell phone users report that they are occasionally irritated by annoying cell phone users who conduct loud conversations in public.”
Amazingly, the cell phone has blurred the line between personal and public space. Cell phone users in the workplace often seem unaware of the presence of their coworkers. Talking too loudly on a cell phone is disturbing to other people and “Eighty-seven percent of Americans in an ABCNEWS “20/20” survey say they encounter that kind of gabbing at least sometimes, and a majority –57 percent –hear it often” (Cohen and Langer, 2006).Unfortunately, cell phones do not have a mute-feature for the operator. Due to the prevalence and enhanced capability of cell phone cameras, the potential for inappropriate use is cause for concern among employers. Coupled with the overwhelming Popularity of online social media websites, camera phones can be used to post pictures, video, and audio recordings. Recently, a number of web postings have been in the news, including the story of Dayna Kempson-Schacht. As reported on My Fox Atlanta by Chris Shaw, “Two and a half months after her death, her father got a text message about a video.
It’s 30 seconds of up close images of Schacht’s crash, including her dead body.” Occurrences such as these erode public trust, and “The public trusts EMS agencies to protect information about emergency scenes and patients (Ludwig, 2008, p.36). The use of cell phone cameras can also lead to complaints of harassment or invasion of privacy. Images of coworkers in private areas such as dressing areas, bathrooms, and locker rooms can be embarrassing and quickly transmitted to countless other people Moreover, if the employee has a video cell phone, which also records sound, they risk being in breach of federal and state wiretap laws if they record others in the workplace without their knowledge or consent (Chatfield, 2010) Over the past several years, numerous incidents have led to employee suspensions or firings over the inappropriate and unauthorized dissemination of photographs and video recordings.
Most employers have zero- tolerance policies for harassment in the workplace; however, thanks to the cell phone and its camera, harassment claims are on the rise. As referenced earlier, photographs those are sexually suggestive and sent via cell phone is referred to as “sexting”, while textual harassment is defined as “the activity of sending text messages to mobile phones which insult or abuse people (MacMillan Dictionary, 2010). Sexting and text messaging in the workplace is rapidly becoming a liability for employers; many have landed in a court of law over inappropriate and offensive texts or photos that are finding their way onto employees' cell phones.“As evidenced by recent court cases, some people will do and say things in text messages that they might not consider doing or saying in face-to-face situations” (Kohl, 2009). This form of harassment usually leaves a physical trail, which can be retrieved as evidence. Answering cell phones or replying to text messages during meetings appears to be an urge that most cannot resist.
Even when set to vibrate, most are tempted to investigate the vibration. Apparently, no one is immune from cell phone distractions. “Rudy Giuliani, smack in the middle of a recent speech before the National Rifle Association, stopped his talk and said that he was taking a call from his wife...”(Belson, 2007). As further evidence, “twenty-four percent of cell-using adults report they often feel like they have to answer their cell phones even when it interrupts a meeting...” according to a 2006 Pew Survey. The literature indicates the disruptive nature of the cell phone in the workplace can be attributed to the lack of cell phone etiquette amongst users. Many of the annoyances, such as loud ring tones, and inappropriate conversations contribute to employee stress. The literature also suggests that many of the legal-consequence behaviors are directly related to the capabilities of the cell phone and the lack of a formal policy guiding appropriate use. Employers ill-equipped to manage the technology cell phones bring to the work place may “...find themselves drowning in risk as they struggle to manage the use and curtail the abuse...” (Flynn, 2009, p. 3). And finally, the best policies are written to protect the integrity and reputation of the organization; therefore, policies should include a code of conduct that emphasizes moral and ethical behavior.
Looking at all the literacy, given above; exhibit so many perceptions about Smartphone impact on career development. When it comes in the form of helping youngsters to develop their career it is playing a vital role. An employee can apply for a job in just few touches with a Smartphone. He can receive or check mails in few seconds without waiting to for a laptop or a PC. Smartphone help the job seekers to find new jobs with specially made job applications which categorizing various sectors of jobs. But in the other hand it raised many negative perception also such phone ringtones interact the meetings, chatting while employees in the meetings. Also learned some employees childishly, they addicted of video games and they use to play games during work hours. These behaviors are interacting colleagues who work together, when it comes to team work it affects in a big time.
