Seeing signs in doctor’s offices that say “no cell phone use”, and noticing very negative comments over the internet about people in grocery stores, etc., talking on the cell phone, I would ask why the fact that other people talking on the cell phone in front of us seems to offend many people?
Is it some primal response to be put off when someone is speaking to a physically -absent person?
Or does cell-phone use in public not inherently offend observers?
The first reason is because people YELL into their cell phones. I hate loud people. I hate people who yell, either into ther cell phones or to someone who is present. Keep your voice down. It is a crowded world.
Moved from General Questions to In My Humble Opinion.
Gfactor
Moderator
Probably IMHO.
I think partly it’s offense that the person is not “mentally” present in the current situation–their attention is (or may shortly be) required, and they’re more concerned with this other conversation than the current one that they are physically participating in.
The other part is that cell phone conversations, due to the nature of the audio equipment, are almost universally LOUDER than face-to-face conversations. So, not only is someone not engaged in their immediate surroundings, but half the time they’re practically yelling, too, which is disruptive in its own right.
The second reason is probably because those people on their phones are also trying to interact with those of us physically present.
Speaking as a cashier, it is very annoying. Not every moment needs to be multi-tasked, thank you.
Or what **Toadspittle **said.
My doctor (and every doctor’s office I’ve ever been to) won’t allow cell use for a couple of reasons.
First, it can invade the privacy of other patients. The phone may pick up a conversation between staff about another patient, and the person on the other end of the line may learn all sorts of interesting information.
Second, it’s just plain obnoxious. Time is money and if I’m jabbering into my phone, that’s less time the nurse and/or doctor has to spend with me. It’s also rude.
Robin
This would probably be better suited for IMHO, since there is not really a factual answer to the question.
I think most people wouldn’t mind others using cell phones in public, if they could do it in a quiet and subdued manner. There are obvious exceptions, such as movie theaters, where cell phones should never be used, but that’s a whole different subject.
I think the major “offenses” of cell phone use boil down to these:[ul]
[li]Many people tend to talk in a loud voice when on the phone, sometimes without even realizing it, so that people nearby can’t avoid listening to their private conversation.[/li][li]This is even worse when they are discussing very personal matters, or TMI type subjects.[/li][li]In places where interaction is required, such as at a fast food restaurant or sales counter, it is very rude to hold up the transaction and make others wait until you have finished your phone conversation.[/li][/ul]I’m sure others will chime in with their own experiences, but these are my major hot buttons.
ETA: WOW! A sextuple simulpost!
That’s really not an answer because the question asked is pretty much “why is it considered rude”?
When it comes to rudeness, the general answer to “why?” is “because it just is”.
There’s hardly ever any rhyme or reason to what constitutes polite behavior and what doesn’t.
Most phones have built-in cameras now, which is why they’re banned in many gyms and locker rooms.
QFT. Or…
Because my prostate is acting up and I’m upset that my wife might be having an affair while the dog is rubbing his ass on the carpet. I’m at Taco Bell right now and as soon as I order this burrito, I’ll tell you about my bowel movements.
Because for every 10 people out there who know how to use a phone (of any kind) correctly, which involves not continuing a conversation on the phone when the person in front of you (receptionist, cashier, clerk, barista) is trying to accomplish their task by waiting on you, not raising your voice to “outdoor” levels, and not sharing completely gross personal information, there is one person who cannot accomplish those tasks. These actions are rude in the following ways:
Unfortunately, therefore, the best way to handle these types of latter situations is to develop a blanket policy of no cellphone use, or risk having the clueless get angry and say “I have a right to use my cell phone, you can’t tell me what to do!”
As others have said, it’s offensive when people are speaking at an unreasonably loud volume. It’s disrespectful when people are holding up a line because they’re talking on the phone, or are not watching where they are walking/standing and blocking the flow of traffic.
It’s also disrespectful to the cashier or the doctor when you can’t be bothered to get off the phone for your interaction with them.
All of these things apply to conversations that you could be having with a physically present person, for what it’s worth, and they reflect a disregard for those around you.
These are the things I notice about cell phone users that make me want to kick them out of orderly society:
Yelling or excessively loud speaking, which disturbs the peace of the people around them who are speaking in normal tones. Generally the conversations are offensively inane. “Hi. What are you doing? I’m on the bus. I’m looking out the window. Oh, you’re on the bus too? Which bus?”
Lack of situational awareness and how if fucks up other people. It is present in cellphone users who are unable to walk and chew gum at the same time. Eg #1/ I guy yammering on the phone walked onto the tracks and into the path of a moving streetcar and got hit. Eg #2/ In a busy underground passageway, a woman who had been walking at a normal rate of speed answered her phone and slowed down to a sleepwalking zombie shuffle, this cause a bottleneck/clusterfuck and a lot of jostling. Eg #3/ Woman with shopping cart oblivious that she was blocking in-store traffic in three directions. Eg #4/ Bitch who caused my bike accident earlier this summer by stepping out in the path of some cyclist in front of me. While people called an ambulance (ETA: not for me, the guy on the bike ahead of me was hurt), she continued to cross the street yammering away, totally oblivious to the people yelling at her and the fact that most of a man’s skin had been ground into the pavement because of her.
Distractibility and inattention interfering with conducting business. Related to #2 above. This is why many coffee shops here will not serve you if you are on a cellphone. The local espresso bar relies on speedy service, and people on phone don’t seem to be able to make an order, provide complete information, get out their money and receive their change in any predictable or timely way. Eg/ Idiot standing in line holds the entire line and has the cashier waiting because he wants to finish his call before starting his transaction. Then gets mad when cashier starts ringing through the person behind him who is ready.
Public TMI. People who talk about their personal hygene or bodily fluids, or otherwise have a personal crisis such as dumping someone by phone or arguing by phone. Commonly perpetrated by those guilty of #1 above.
General bad manners. My girlfriend and I had lunch, she looked and sighed whistfully saying “Well, that looks like a fun lunch date.” A couple were sitting cross from each other on what looked like a date, but they weren’t talking to each other, they were both on the phone.
To answer the OP’s question: Because I don’t want to know what the person on the phone thinks about the movie she’s spoiling for all of us, her grades, the way she’s gaining weight, her sleeping habits, what her mother said when she finally confessed, where she’s going for dinner, how much she made in tips at Hooters last night, where she wants to go for vacation, why she’s afraid of the dark, how she plans to pay for a new TV, the trouble with her high speed internet, how Chelsea looked like a skank in that dress, what shoes are on sale at Macy*s, what she hopes to get for Christmas, how horrible her professor is, how the airlines are ripping us off, why she didn’t vote in the runoff election, her MySpace address, what happened on Survivor, what she’s doing this weekend… and some of this is unavoidable.
I hate to be stuck in a space with someone using a cell phone - there’s no escaping an elevator or a train car or a check out line. I always finish a conversation before getting in a elevator - a guy actually complimented me for doing so.
I don’t understand the need to answer EVERY SINGLE call you receive. I’m only immediately available to my children. If I’m in someone’s company I’ll return calls once I’m alone. I think it’s very disrespectful to the person you’re with to spend part of your “face time” talking to someone else.
I don’t know if it is the loudness that bothers me. I was at Subway yesterday and the checkout clerk was a loud person. it was the lunch hour, the place was very busy, and I could still hear the checkout guy over the other conversations. “WHAT KIND OF SANDWICH YOU GOT? YOU WANNA MEAL WITH THAT?” He wasn’t making me angry with his loudness, that was his natural voice.
Earlier in the week, I was at a store and a guy was having a cell convo. When he got close to me, I found myself annoyed and moving to another part of the store to get away from him. I think it is because he had removed himself from being there (except for physically) and I resented having to listen to his one-sided conversation. If he had been personally telling me about his world, I’d be OK with it, but being forced to listen to it just because I was in proximity to him annoyed me on some level.
Reminds me of a young woman I saw who was having a screaming argument via cellphone with her roommate. She was actually standing about 30-40 feet away from me. By the time they were done, I agreed with the roommate. (It was about rent or some such)
The doctor’s office may also discourage cell phone use out of concern that it could interfere with some sort of medical equipment in operation. IIRC, hospitals typically bar their use for that reason.
jali, you are the only person I’ve ever seen type “Macy*s”.
Well, frankly, I was going to have to tell you about that anyway if I wasn’t on the cell. I mean, really, if you can’t share your news with [del]complete strangers[/del] new friends, who can you share it with?