DigiPlay 3: Leisure Constraints, Entitlement and Access to Technologies of Leisure

Greenbank Building,
University of Central Lancashire, Preston
Weds 15th Sept 2004

Emotion and mobile phones

Jane Vincent
Digital World Research Centre, University of Surrey
j.vincent@surrey.ac.uk

This presentation is about the affect of the use of mobile phones and not about the device itself; it poses questions, offers ideas and opens doors for further study. The topic of emotion and mobile phones emerged as a key theme during two years of studies carried out by the DWRC www.surrey.ac.uk/dwrc to examine the social shaping of 3G, the new technology for mobile communications that is currently being introduced. This new technology augments the capabilities of a mobile phone device enabling access to WWW as well as voice and text together with camera and video, music, radio and games and more. In examining people's attachment to their mobile phones the study has found that people have developed an intense and intimate relationship with the device as a result of all that it engenders. The presentation discusses these findings and considers them in the context of the seminar topic.

Jane Vincent has over 20 years experience in the UK mobile communications industry working with BT and mmO2 specialising in business transformation, product marketing and strategy development. Her experience spans the evolution of the three generations of mobile communications during which time she has contributed to technological and commercial design and development across all aspects of the value chain. She joined the Digital World Research Centre as a Research Fellow in 2002 and has worked with them since 1998 managing BT Cellnet's contribution to the STEMPEC project. Jane studied Social Sciences at the University of Leicester and her academic interests now are in the user behaviours associated with mobile communications, in particular, emotion and mobile phones on which she has published several papers. She has presented at academic and industry conferences and is currently delivering a second project for the UMTS Forum on the Social Shaping of 3G/UMTS Products and Services.

Return to Seminar programme.

Top

CRIC is now proud to be part of the Manchester Institute of Innovation Research (MIoIR)
Centre for Research on Innovation and Competition (CRIC), The University of Manchester,
Harold Hankins Building, Booth Street West, Manchester M13 9QH, England
Phone +44 (0)161 275 7365 Fax: +44 (0) 161 275 7361
Site maintained by: Ishty Hussain