People prefer text over speech. Apparently, this is especially true for U.S. teens who send about 4,000 texts per month. What influences people to send texts rather than speak to others in person?
Research shows that the written word is preferred because it is asynchronous, whereas the spoken word is synchronous. The written word is simply more convenient for communication. Think about sending an email to someone rather than trying to get in touch with someone by phone. Often if one tries to call another person, they are busy and then need to call you back. However, if one sends an email to the other person, it can be read at the convenience of the recipient.
Written word is also preferred because it is intranscient, meaning that it can be saved! We like the convenience of being able to look back on our text messages to help us remember what time we made plans for lunch with a friend. The intranscience can also help us with email about important deadlines. I have experienced this personally. For instance, if I look at my planner and see an upcoming deadline for submitting an application for a scholarship, my email platform has a way to search for documents regarding the various emails that I receive. This search feature has saved me from scrolling through countless emails on multiple occasions, and more often than not, it helps me reach my deadlines on time.
Additionally, with an email or other form of written communication, the sender takes more time to think about what they want to communicate to the recipient, and this can lead to better communication between people. It is always a good idea to proofread an email before hitting the “send” button because something could be written that might be misconstrued by the one who receives the email. This is also the case when sending texts; one needs to be certain that what you say isn’t taken in the wrong way. For example, the letter 'K' is much harsher in texting than the word 'ok.'
An example was presented in the readings to show how texting could be used to help incoming college students who weren’t familiar with necessary deadlines imposed by the college for applications and choosing courses. Studies showed that if the future students were sent a text to inform them of the upcoming deadlines, they were much more likely to do what was necessary to meet the deadlines.
In my opinion, this is a great idea. As a first generation college student, it was quite difficult to learn how to navigate the websites and get familiar with all of the deadlines and requirements. Fortunately, I have an older sister who assisted me with my options, but I think I would have been even more comfortable if my deadlines had been prompted by texts as well.
Another example that was noteworthy from the readings was the research done by Michael Schober and Frederick Conrad. They did research to see if people would respond better to surveys when they had to speak the responses or if they would do the surveys better if they were able to write the responses. It was found that people were much more willing to write responses to surveys and were more open to giving more accurate answers if they could write rather than speak.
Written communication has been an aide to our society for many years, but more recently, it has become more ubiquitous because of a rise in written communication via the internet. Have no fear. We're not becoming worse at communicating with one another. We're not becoming more socially awkward. We are merely using the tools available to us via the internet, and we're communicating better because of it.
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