Use of Mobile Phones During Working Hours

In the age of information technology, there are few who do not use a mobile phone. Due to its advantages, such as portability and constant accessibility, it has become an indispensable object of everyday life and we use it for a wide variety of purposes and not just for communication. Mobile phones are not only used in our private lives, but also during working hours. The purpose set out in the diploma thesis, namely to research mobile devices and their use in the workplace, has been achieved. With the emergence of the internet, diverse social networks have developed, whose important characteristic is that they enable interactions between individuals regardless of geographical, temporal and material circumstances. The research shows that only a small percentage, slightly more than one tenth of the research participants, do not use a mobile phone during working hours.

Problem

In the age of information technology, there are few who do not use a mobile phone. Due to its advantages, such as portability and constant accessibility, it has become an indispensable object of everyday life and we use it for a wide variety of purposes and not just for communication. Mobile phones are not only used in our private lives, but also during working hours. The purpose set out in the diploma thesis, namely to research mobile devices and their use in the workplace, has been achieved.

Regarding the objective of the diploma thesis, whether the use of mobile devices in the workplace affects the work performed, meaning in such a way that the work is not performed in accordance with work obligations, the research results indicate that the use of mobile phones for private purposes during working hours does not significantly affect the scope and quality of work performed. After 1977, mobile telephony became very widespread in Slovenia. More recent statistical data show that there are already more than 2,300,000 users of the mobile network in Slovenia and that the number is growing from year to year.

The basic characteristics of mobile telephony, namely portability and constant accessibility, are those that encourage people to make a purchase.

Solution and Method

With the emergence of the internet, diverse social networks have developed, whose important characteristic is that they enable interactions between individuals regardless of geographical, temporal and material circumstances. This enables an individual to establish and maintain contacts with persons with whom they would otherwise never be able to get in touch. Among the main advantages of social networks are simple, fast and free access to various contents and to a large number of persons.

An individual can, by means of accessing social networks, satisfy interests in socialising and communicating with known and unknown persons, in entertainment, in acquiring information and in promoting their knowledge and experience. Important disadvantages of social networks are high exposure of the user, invasion of privacy, difficult verification of the authenticity of information and content. With the widespread use of mobile phones, access to social networks has become greatly simplified. The content and information available on social networks are entertaining, educational and professional.

Social networks can also be used for marketing and selling products and services. Statistical data also confirm the widespread use of the internet and thus also social networks, as at the beginning of 2016 as many as 75% of people aged between 16 and 75 years were internet users. Social networks enable individuals to establish supportive interpersonal relationships, which differ from ordinary interpersonal relationships in that they are more about connectivity than about relationships and are more superficial and impersonal. In addition to the advantages and numerous positive aspects of using social networks, it is not possible to overlook the negative consequences if use develops into addiction. Mobile telephone devices are not only used in private time and space, but also in public, where we happen to be.

In doing so, there is an intertwining between private and public, as their personal content becomes accessible to other persons who happen to be present when they use their mobile phone. At the same time, the private content of other persons is accessible to us when we are, without really wanting to, witnesses to the conversations of other persons. The fact that this is an important topic is confirmed by the fact that the right to privacy is one of the fundamental human rights. Likewise, the fact that every time we use mobile or electronic devices, data is stored in the form of so-called electronic traces cannot be overlooked. Not only are all our activities that we perform with the help of electronic devices inadvertently recorded, certain data is also collected for a specific purpose.

Increasingly advanced electronic devices also enable more control over users. The use of mobile devices during working hours enables users to effectively coordinate work, family life and leisure time. The use of mobile devices for private purposes during working hours depends on the type of work and work tasks, on the intensity and complexity of work, as well as on the user's attitude towards work. Employers have the right to monitor the use of company resources for private purposes due to the protection of their own telecommunications system or work resources, whilst at the same time the employee has the right to privacy and autonomy.

It is essential that the employer's right to protect their property and the employee's right to privacy are coordinated and that one does not prevail over the other. The research shows that the use of mobile phones is extremely widespread, as all respondents use them. The research also confirms a high proportion of those who regularly use social networks, among whom the younger generation predominates, namely persons in the age group 22–30 years.

Results

More than half of the research participants confirmed regular use of a mobile phone also during working hours, whilst a further third answered that they use a mobile phone during working hours sometimes. The research shows that only a small percentage, slightly more than one tenth of the research participants, do not use a mobile phone during working hours. The majority of respondents answered that they do not fall behind with their work due to the use of a mobile phone during working hours and that they do not perform less work due to the use of a mobile phone during working hours. Three quarters of all participants expressed the opinion that their work does not suffer due to excessive talking on their personal mobile phone. The research confirmed one hypothesis put forward, refuted one, and one could neither be confirmed nor refuted. The majority of research participants are members of the younger generation.

To the question posed about the use of social networks, the vast majority of them answered affirmatively, whilst the percentage of older respondents who use social networks is lower. The research refuted the hypothesis that the main reason for purchasing a mobile phone is the popularity of the device among other users, namely blending in with the surroundings, as participants cited the functionality of the mobile device as the most important reason for purchasing a mobile device. As regards the third hypothesis, it emerges from the opinion of the research participants that the use of a personal mobile phone during working hours does not affect the quality and quantity of work performed.