Cell Phones: Adverse Health Effects & A Sleep Data App - Essay Sample

Introduction

The issue of cell phone usage has been quite controversial as evidenced in the literature review, some researchers have agreed on the issue claiming that cell phones have had adverse effects on our health, while other researchers have had a different view. Professor Bai et al. who works at Tsinghua University, is one of the people who believes that cell phones have a negative effect on our health. His article comes with a framework where an app can collect data as a person's sleep at night (Bai, Xu, Ma, Sun, & Zhao, 2012, p. 73). The app can tell the quality of sleep of a person. So the app can differentiate between the quality of sleep of a person who is a phone user and a non-user. The phone user has a lower quality of sleep. That is how using a phone affects the health of a person, because the quality of sleep of a person affects their health.

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Professor Demirci also tends to agree in with the same effect his article. His article shows the impact of cell phone usage on mental health. The data from the article was collected from university students. The article continues to say that the ratio of women using smartphones constantly is more than that of men (Demirci, Akgonul, & Akpinar, 2015, p. 96). Moreover, women are more likely to be in depression, anxiety, and daytime dysfunction. The research argue that there is relationship between smartphone users and anxiety and depression. People who use social media constantly are always stressed and anxious. When they are not with their phones, they feel disturbed as they do not want to be left behind on what is happening in the world. The article presents that there is a negative effect of using cell phones on our health. The students show signs of stress and anxiety because of excessive usage of smartphones.

The other article that has the view that cell phones have a negative effect on our health was written by Grace. The article is of the view that using cell phones for long hours can cause short-sightedness and blurred visions (Grace, 2011, p. 27). The use of cell phones for long hours can course myopia. When a person has myopia, they constantly experience headache and eye strains. The use of smartphones has also led to the deterioration of children's eyes. The article suggests that many people who have eye problems may have been looking at phone screens for more extended hours. Professor Muhammad Khan, also tends to have a similar view. The article sheds light on excessive use of cell phones can affect the health of an individual (Khan, M. (2008) p. 53). The article suggests that the use of phones can cause health problems, especially for young people. Phones emit x rays which are not good for the health of the people.

The works by two Professors, Asoke Nath and Sneha Mukherjee also tend to coincide with the opinion that cell phones have a negative effect on our health. Their article is about the effects of cells phones on health. This article suggested that the GSM operated cell phones have a more significant impact on brain activity as compared to the CDMA operated cell phones (Nath, Asoke & Mukherjee, Sneha. (2015 p.84). The article claims that cell phones are hazardous as well. So the article argues that cell phones have an adverse effect on the health of users.

Contrary to the views stated above, there are some researchers who have actually argued that cell phones have had a positive impact on our health. Two authors by the names, Patrick and Raab from the Department of Family and Preventive Medicine. They claim that cell phone usage affects the health of an individual positively. Contrary to other articles, this article is of the view that cell phones have had a positive impact on the healthcare industry. People can get services through their smartphones and advances in the healthcare industry have been made possible through smartphones.

How Cell Phones Affects Our Communication Skills

From the literature review, the correlation between the cell phone usage and communication skills seemed to be quite clear. Different researchers have different views on the subject matter. An article by Jumana Khamis claims that cell phones have an effect on our communication skills. Her article talks about how the use of phones has an impact on communication with others (Khamis, J. (2018, April 13 p.53). The article says that the use of cell phones have significantly affected the way people communicate. The first time that a person gets a phone, they start developing changes, and they no longer have to communicate frequently. People who are used to talking on the phone find it hard to interact mainly with new people. It becomes hard for them to talk to a gathering of people; people used to staying with their phones are often shy and unable to communicate on a one on one personal basis. In short, the article says that the use of phones has influenced the communication skills of many people negatively. People can no longer express themselves without using their phones.

Two Professors wrote an article that tend to agree with the opinion that communication has had a negative effect on communication skills. That is Professor Przybylski and Professor Weinstein. They claim that cell phones have had a negative effect on communication skills. The article claims that people are used to using their smartphones that they see no need to meet or interact on a physical basis. People no longer interact on a face to face basis. Professor Sherry Turkle also tends to agree with the same opinion in her book; she argues that technology has affected our emotions and social life. She scrutinizes the damage initiated by the technology to our emotional relationships from her interviews with children and adults and their relationships with technology. The author claims that these inventions have torn people apart and they have brought people closer to the gadgets.

In contrary to the view of the other articles, an article written by two Professors, Jin and Park tends to disagree with the view that cell phones have affected our communication skills negatively. Their article argues that cell phone usage influences the communication skills of an individual (Jin, B., & Park, N. (2010), p. 21). The article argues that the use of smartphones and social media has only increased the interaction between people and their families. The people who conducted this research claimed that their interaction with their families only increased after they started using cell phones and social media. So the article shows a constructive relationship between the use of cell phones and communication between people. People communicate more when they have cell phones, that is, even to people who are far away.

References

Bai, Y., Xu, B., Ma, Y., Sun, G., & Zhao, Y. (2012, February). "Will You Have a Good Sleep Tonight?". Sleep Quality Prediction with Mobile Phone. doi:10.4108, PP.124-130.

Demirci, K., Akgonul, M., & Akpinar, A. (2015). Relationship of smartphone use severity with sleep quality, depression, and anxiety in university students. Journal of behavioral addictions, Vol,4(2), PP.85-92.

Gracie, B. S. (2011, Sep 05). HEALTH: Daily devices test users' eyes: Phones, smart boards exposing bad vision. nearsightedness rates have soared over the past three decades. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Accessed March 13, 2019, Retrieved from https://ajc.newspapers.com/search/#query=Daily+Devices+Test+Users%27+Eyes

Jin, B., & Park, N. (2010). In-Person Contact Begets Calling and Texting: Interpersonal Motives for Cell Phone Use, Face-to-Face Interaction, and Loneliness. Volume.13, Doi 10.1089, PP.611-617

Khamis, J. (2018, April 13). "How mobile phones are killing human interaction skills". Mobile Addiction Replacing Nuances of Conversation with Messages and Emoji. Accessed 03 March 2019; Retrieved from The Gulf News: https://gulfnews.com/going-out/society/how-mobile-phones-are-killing-human-interaction-skills-1.2205044

Khan, M. (2008). "Adverse Effects of Excessive Mobile Phone Use". International Journal of Occupational Medicine and Environmental Health. Vol.21, PP.289-93.

Nath, Asoke & Mukherjee, Sneha. (2015). "International Journal of Advanced Research in Computer Science and Management Studies". Impact of Mobile Phone/Smartphone: A Pilot Study on Positive and Negative Effects. Vol.3, PP,294-302.

Patrick, K., Griswold, W. G., Raab, F., & Intille, S. S. (2008). "Health and the Mobile Phone". American journal of preventive medicine, Vol.35(2), PP.177-81.

Przybylski, A. K., & Weinstein, N. (2013). Can you connect with me now? How the presence of mobile communication technology influences face-to-face conversation quality. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, Vol,30(3), PP.237-246

Turkle, S. (2011). "Alone together". Why We Expect More From Technology and Less From Each Other. New York: Basic Books, PP.279-348