Cellphones May Make You Feel Less Connected

                Contrary to common perception, the use of cell phones may actually lead you to feel less socially connected with friends and family, depending on your gender or cell phone habits. Researcher surveyed 493 students, ranging in age from 18-29 years, to see whether cell phone use, including texting and talking, was associated with feeling socially connected to their parents and peers. Female students reported spending and average of 365 minutes per day using their cell phones, sending and receiving an average of 265 texts per day, and making and receiving six calls per day. Male students reported spending less time on their phone (287 minutes), sending and receiving fewer texts (190), and making and receiving the same amount of calls as the female students. For the women, the study found that talking on the phone was associated with feeling emotionally close with their parents. For the men, daily calling and texting were not related in any way to feelings of emotional closeness with either parents or with peers.