It Really Is Rude to Use Cellphones at Dinner, Study Claims

In this ringing age, everyone seems to be obsessed with cell phones. A new Pew study  of 3,217 adults finds that 89% of people have used their phones to "talk, text, or snap a photo while out with friends".

This flouts the normal etiquette of communication, according to newser.

"People's cell phone use has injected itself into public spaces," the study's authors said. "This has blurred the line between private and public as often-intimate and occasionally blustering phone conversations have now become a common part of the background noise during bus rides, grocery shopping excursions, picnics, sidewalk strolls, waits in airport terminals and many other public venues," according to cnet.

People have become so obsessed with it, that they continue to keep it on all the time. Look at these statistics: "Of the 92% of US adults who have a cellphone, 90% say they almost always have it. In fact, 45% say they rarely turn their device off. About 31% say they never do."

They are also considered to be trendy and cool, so that 77% of users say it's fine to chat someone even when they are walking in a street, while 75% don't find anything wrong with it during public transportation.

However, most people do not want to use it in restaurants. Only about 38% of people think you should use your phone at restaurants, 12% at a family dinner, and only 5% in a meeting or movie theater. Just 4% feel that texting in a church is not wrong.

Still, why do people use them all the time? About 16% say they begin to get interested in a cell phone when they lose interest in a group, while about 23% say it helps them to avoid contact with others. Just 10% use phones to keep away from a conversation.

Younsters, below the age of 29 are fond of using cell-phones even in public and social settings. But 98% of young adults, compared to 69% of users aged 65 or older are fond of cell phones.