The phone is ringing
I'm not going to answer it
I don't want to know
Who wants to talk to me
In the past, anyone who had a phone was privileged. Talking on the street with a mobile phone? Unthinkable. Back then, in many families, it was rare to be able to talk to someone on the phone.
Today, in a reality where every home has one or two (or 5 or 10) cell phones, and at a time when millions and millions of people pay a monthly fee and then talk as many times as they want, it would be expected that, by 2024, answering a call would be automatic.
But it's not like that. Especially for generation Z.
Young people between the ages of 18 and 34 don't answer their cell phones very often - some of their parents may have noticed.
The conclusion is revealed (or confirmed) in a Uswitch survey, quoted in The Times.
Among the 2,000 people interviewed, 25% admitted that they never answer a call on their cell phone.
They see the phone ringing, and what do they do? They ignore it.
Ali Mitib
Then they answer? Some send an SMS or write in an internet chat if they know the number; if they don't, they look it up on Google.
But more than half of them explained that if they receive a call that wasn't arranged, it's a sign that bad news is coming. That's why they don't pick up. Even if they know the number.
In fact, there are examples of young people who reveal that they only pick up the call if they have agreed on something; otherwise, they never pick it up.
"Because spontaneous phone calls are no longer made," explains humorist Freya Mallard. The voice message "brings a lot less pressure".
Even to announce important moments, the phone call is starting to fall off the list. The same Freya is pregnant but will announce the birth on social media - she won't speak directly to anyone, even her closest family member. It's a lot of work to think about what to say and how to say it.
And yes, another trend is confirmed: writing instead of talking. Around 70% said they prefer to send a message rather than call.
37% prefer a voice message to a call - here, in the 35-54 age group, the percentage drops to... 1%.
So the phone is no longer good for... calling. "I don't see any advantage in using a cell phone to call. It's much easier to write," commented young Carlum Godson.
Young people prefer "low-pressure" communications. It's a sign that there's no urgency to get an answer.
And because they don't want to invade the other person's space, disturb them - because when they themselves are being "disturbed", you already know: they don't answer.
