Where is your phone right now? You knew the answer to that immediately, didn’t you! Phones (we don’t even need to add the “mobile” prefix these days because it is taken for granted that your phone goes with you) are an essential item when you go anywhere these days, possibly superseding underwear as the single most necessary personal item. Indeed, a new study has shown that your phone may be even more intimate a part of you than you realise.
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The study took place over six weeks and involved the researchers collecting and analysing 235 million Tweets. The researchers were able to detect if the Tweets had been made from phones or other mobile devices or if they had been made using web-based devices like laptops. They then analysed the language used in the Tweets to see if there is a qualitative difference when Tweeting from your mobile device. The language analysis involved establishing the frequency and ratios of words traditionally associated with personality and behavioural traits.
The results showed that Tweets coming from mobile devices are much more egocentric than Tweets from other devices and the ratio of egocentric to non-egocentric Tweets is much higher for mobile devices than other devices.
It would appear that your phone or other mobile device really is becoming an extension of yourself, and this egocentric focus supports that idea. When it comes to your phone, it appears that ego is certainly not a dirty word.
