REGIONAL DIALOGUE FOR THE
INFORMATION SOCIETY (DIRSI)
JUNIOR RESEARCHER’S PAPER – JAMAICA
Beyond Voice: The Use of Value-added
Features and Mobile Services among Youth
and Young Adults in Jamaica
Allison Brown,
Research Assistant, Telecommunications Policy and Management Programme (TPM),
Mona School of Business, University of the West Indies
April 2008
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Acknowledgements………………………………………………..……………….……..5
Executive Summary…………………………………………..………………….…..…6-7
1. Introduction………………………………………………………………………..8
Orality in Jamaican Culture………………………………………..………….......9
Telecommunications in Jamaica: The Context ……………………………….9-11
Jamaica and the Mobile Explosion…………………………………………...12-14
Other Cases of Telecommunication Liberalization in the Caribbean......…….14-16
Summary Analysis………………………………………..…………………..16-17
2. Objectives and Definitions……………………………………………………....19
Research Objective and Research Questions…………….………………….......19
Operational Definitions………………………………………………...…….19-20
3. Literature Review………………………………………………………………..21
Perspectives on Technology……………………………………….…………21-22
Motivation, Uses and the Mobile Phone…………………………………………22
Youth Culture……………………………………………………………...…22-23
Youth Culture and the Mobile Identity………………………………………23-24
Youth and Mobile Independence……………………………………………...…24
Beyond Voice Mobile Services………………………………………………24-26
Jamaican Youth and Mobile Uptake…………………………………………26-29
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4. Methodology……………………………………………………………………30
The Method………………………………………………………….……….30-31
5. Presentations of Findings
Group 1: 16-18 Years Old……………………………………..….….32-37
Group 2: 19–21 Years Old…………………..…………………….....37-42
Group 3: 22 – 24 Years Old…………………………………...……..42-45
Group 4: 25 – 27 Years Old……………………………………….....45-48
6. Analysis of Findings……………………………………………………………..49
Overview of Trends………………………………………………………......49-53
The Mobile Phone: Fulfilling Youth and Young Adult Needs………………53-55
7. Conclusions…………………………………………………………….…….56-57
References……………………………………………………………………………58-60
Appendix I………………………….………………………………………..………61-62
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LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
List of Tables
Table 1: Survey Results – Jamaica Youth Usage of Mobiles (2007)…….…28
Table 2: General Findings – Group 1…………………………………….....33
Table 3: General Findings – Group 2………..……………………………...38
Table 4: General Findings – Group 3……………..………………………...42
Table 5: General Findings – Group 4………………..……………………...46
List of Figures
Figure 1: Mobile Cellular Telephone Subscribers
Per 100 Inhabitants, 1994 – 2006……………………..…………14
Figure 2: Mobile Ownership Among Jamaican Youth....…………….…28
Figure 3: The Mobile Attachment Scale ………………………………..52
List of Boxes
Box 1: Varied Levels of Attachment Toward the Mobile
in the 22 – 24 Age Group………………….……………………..45
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
This work was carried out with the financial support from a grant given to the IEP from the
International Development Research Center (IDRC), Ottawa, Canada. It was conducted in the
Telecommunications Policy and Management Programme (TPM) in the Mona School of Business, UWI.
The ardent and supportive supervision of Dr. Hopeton Dunn, Director of the TPM was integral to
the completion of this project to the required standards and quality. As such I express great
appreciation for his expert guidance in this regard. I also wish to express thanks to supporting
team members who assisted in recruiting respondents, transcribing tapes and reviewing the
report. They are Richardo Williams, Grace Collymore, Sanya Foster and Oliver McKenzie.
Finally, the material herein could not have been unearthed without the cooperative involvement
of the respondents who were not shy to relate their attitudes, perceptions and behaviour in
contributing to the research project.
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Jamaica provides a unique situation to investigate mobile services among low income persons. As a
developing country with a GDP per capita of US$4,200.00 in 2005 (UNDP 2008), Jamaica has defied the
odds in having a mobile penetration rate of 106%, one that is higher than many developed countries
(OUR quoted in PIOJ 2007). This makes Jamaica a key case in the use of mobile services on a limited
budget.
This study builds on the findings of an extensive quantitative survey, led by the Regional Dialogue on the
Information Society and conducted in seven countries across the region including Jamaica. Among the
findings was that 93.8% of Jamaicans surveyed were mobile users. The study also yielded rich results in
relation to the use of mobile services among youth, finding that they had above average adoption levels of
text messaging and other mobile services. In light of this data on Jamaica’s unique situation, this paper
seeks to answer the questions: What value-added features and mobile services are young people using and
what are they using them for? The goal was to determine how these services and features fulfill needs in
their day-to-day lives covering various aspects such as security, social interaction, cost-saving, recreation
and commercial activities.
A qualitative inquiry process was used to answer these questions. This methodology provided a
deeper understanding of the first hand experiences and motivations of youth in relation to non-
voice mobile services and features. Young persons between the ages of 16 and 27 from the urban
middle class participated in focus group sessions and in-depth interviews where they discussed
their use of these applications.
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Major findings of this research study were that the use of mobile services and features by youth
in the age ranges 16-18 and 19-21 are driven by both cost factors as well as peer pressure. For
older groups (22-24 and 25-27), business tools and business communication was a unique
application. The major difference between usage by men and women was in the perspective of
females that the mobile phone is a security device. Most young males were not inclined to agree
with this view.
The relationship of participants to their phone reflected three forms: affinity, indifference and
aversion. Personal attitudes and experiences seem to be major determinants of these attitudes.
Overall, there was an obvious propensity among youth to manipulate mobile services and
features to their advantage especially among those aged 16-21 years. This is evident in some of
them ‘thinking out-of-the-box’ to apply mobile application to their situation. There is a necessity
to make more services available to these youth and young adults through lower tariffs on mobile
Internet and other mobile data services. Jamaica, as a developing nation, needs to find ways to
hone and capitalize on this capacity among its young people in making positive contributions to
the nation’s competitiveness.
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1. INTRODUCTION
Since telecommunication liberalization began in Jamaica in the late 1990s, competition among mobile
providers has caused the costs for mobile phones and mobile services to plummet. Owning and using a
mobile phone is no longer reserved for the elite, business class but now open to wider groups including
persons of lower income and young people. A plethora of value-added features have been introduced due
to the fast-evolving mobile technology as well as the ever-expanding array of mobile services available.
As such, people are finding more applications for their mobile phones. Youth, in particular, display a
propensity towards adoption of these evolving mobile services in line with the view that “young people,
rather than fearing technology, are impatient to pursue it” (Katz, 2003). This paper interrogates the uptake
of such services by Jamaica’s youth population in relation to the unique characteristics of the Jamaican
context.
In 2007 an extensive quantitative research project was undertaken to explore mobile usage patterns
among low income Jamaicans (Dunn 2007). This was part of a major seven-country survey of Latin
America and the Caribbean (Galperin & Mariscal 2007). The investigation found that 93.5% of Jamaican
respondents were mobile “users”. This was the highest percentage in all the countries studied. Of the total
number of mobile users, 95.5% were mobile owners. The study also found that prepaid plans were the
most dominant methods of payment and that social networking was the most common application of
mobile usage. Additional significant trends found among the low-income sample was the high incidence
cost-saving mechanisms including text messaging. “Beyond Voice” acts as a complement to the
understanding of Dunn’s findings by exploring the use of mobile phones in terms of its non-voice
applications particularly in relation to one segment of the population: youth and young people. This study
is different, however, because its focus was on persons of a middle class background.
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Orality in Jamaican Culture
Over the years scholars have identified that orality is of great significance to the Jamaican culture as the
main method of passing on stories and cultural information. Perkins (cited in EE 2000) noted that
“Jamaica has an oral culture and the history of the community has always been stored and transmitted
through story-telling.” With the majority of Jamaicans being African descendants, the oral culture is a
retention from a situation where Africans favoured oral traditions. In this way an oral culture developed
where “voice is the means by which people lacking power in other ways can acquire and exert control”
(Senior, 2005, 42). Considering the cultural propensity of Jamaicans to the use of voice and also due to
the connotations of voice in terms of power and control, telephony would be expected to be embraced by
the Jamaican culture as another way that stories can be passed on.
Indeed, the level of functional literacy in Jamaica has risen since the days of slavery to 79.9% (UNDP,
2008), but retentions of orality pervade in dominant forms of Jamaican culture such as in its musical and
literary traditions. The mobile phone is a modern day tool which facilitates the culture of Jamaican story-
telling through voice. As such, it can be argued that the largely oral culture which is an extant feature of
Jamaican society is one of the drivers of high mobile uptake in Jamaica.
Telecommunications in Jamaica: The Context
Jamaica is one of the 15 Member States of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM). It is numbered in the
category known as the Small Island Developing States (SIDS), which are of relatively small size with
open and dependent economies and which are vulnerable to economic shocks and natural disasters. These
vulnerabilities impact not only on the rate of development but impede the rate of recovery after such
events take place. These circumstances, as well as a history steeped in colonialism and neo-colonialism,
has led to economic dependence on countries of the North and international organizations for economic
aid and private investment. In the words of Dunn (1995, 201), “a major consequence of British
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imperialism on the existing policy and network structure of Caribbean telecommunications’ is the
region’s increasing reliance and external capital, technology and management expertise”.
In terms of the telecommunications industry, “Caribbean countries, as small, open economies are
particularly vulnerable to the financial strength and private decision-making machinery of individual
multinational corporations whose global budgets often dwarf the national budgets of many of these
states.” A similar view is held by Lodge and Stirton (2002) who argue that “tele-colonial domination by
metropolitan telecommunications carriers and suppliers and cultural (economic) imperialism’
characterized the development of Caribbean telecommunications policy up to the period of
telecommunication liberalization. These observations highlight that the control of the telecommunications
sector in these countries was held by multinational actors from outside the country.
In the case of Jamaica, Cable and Wireless (C&W) had control of the telecommunication monopoly since
the 1880s and had strong influence on telecommunications policies. Policies that were influenced by this
include the “guaranteed rate of return” on its investments and the self-regulated setting of tariffs for
telecommunications (Dunn 1995, 214). This influence continued in spite of the government’s acquisition
of holdings in the Jamaica Telephone Company, eventually holding a total of 82.7% in 1987. Shortly after
“faced with infrastructural deterioration in the networks” the government was left to resort to the sale in a
of telecommunications assets and equity to Cable and Wireless (Dunn, 1995 206). Cable and Wireless
once again gained majority ownership of the telecommunications provider now holding 79% of the local
telecom company and 79% of the overseas carrier (Dunn 1995, 208). It therefore inherited TOJ’s
exclusive rights to wired telecommunications services in Jamaica from 1987 for 25 years (renewable for
another 25 years).
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This legally-conferred exclusivity held by Cable and Wireless inhibited the possibility of breaking the
monopoly in spite of an emerging international imperative towards market liberalization. The General
Agreement of Trade in Services (GATS) from the WTO was one such imperative in 1997. According to
Dunn (2000), the GATS “set the stage for trading system rules to be applied to the area of services”. The
overall goal was to increase the growth in global trade in services, including telecommunications. Due to
the nation’s dependence on aid from multi-lateral organizations, this demand of the WTO would have to
be met.
Aside from the imperative of the WTO, the internal telecommunications market was getting restless.
Influential citizens had begun lobbying the government for introduction of competition in the
telecommunications market. Rural citizens and some inner city communities had little or no access to
telephony with long waiting lists for landline installation. Tariff costs for international calls were out-of-
reach for the average Jamaican.
Mobile technology had been available in Jamaica since the early 1990s but there was limited use due to
high access costs. Mainly upper class business persons could afford mobile phones. As time progressed to
the late 1990s, Cable and Wireless introduced prepaid mobile phones, which were ‘pay-as-you-go’ and
more appealing to low-income customers and some young people with disposable income. Tariff costs as
well as the price for instruments remained prohibitive for most Jamaicans.
After renegotiating C&W’s exclusive rights in 1998, the Jamaican government was able to commit to the
WTO’s Agreement to liberalize telecommunications and began phased implementation in 2000.
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Jamaica and the Mobile Explosion
The liberalization of the Jamaican telecommunications industry marked a turning point in the history of
the national communication, as it introduced the mobile culture into the mainstream local culture. The
phased process began with the liberalization of the mobile industry in 2001 which led to the entry into the
market of Digicel and later Centennial (which was sold soon after and now operates as MiPhone). These
entrants posed competition to the incumbent by attracting new mobile phone subscribers and by wooing
those who were already Cable and Wireless customers.1 This was reflected in the fact that 100,000
persons subscribed to Digicel in their first 100 days of operation. This was a target Digicel had set for 1
year (Digicel Group 2008).
The new mobile entrants introduced affordable high tech instruments and at least one (Digicel) billed
customers by the second and not by the minute. The new entrants also used a range of promotions in order
to encourage new types of users to enter the mobile market. In a short span of time, Digicel became the
mobile market leader with many persons abandoning their C&W landlines and opting for a mobile phone
(Dunn 2006). Although this reflects a global trend in fixed-to-mobile substitution, it was also influenced
by the longstanding negative sentiments many Jamaicans had towards the Cable and Wireless monopoly.
These negative sentiments seemed to add fuel to their loyalty towards Digicel, which was seen as doing
more for the Jamaican people.
With liberalization came greater access to international calling. As Heather Horst (2006) notes,
1 Other elements of the Telecommunication Act included the opening up of the market for data and Internet services,
and wired telecommunications. By 2003, a completely liberalized telecommunications market existed in Jamaica.
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“For many Jamaicans without access to a regular or reliable phone service prior to 2001, the mobile phone
is viewed as an unadulterated blessing, transforming the role of transnational communication from an
intermittent event to part of daily life.”
As such international call costs, which prior to liberalization were as high as US$2.00 per minute, reduced
to the cost of some local calls. Average Jamaicans no longer had to rely heavily on collect calling and
over-priced international phone cards. Mobile telephony also served as an alternative to call boxes, for
which persons would normally have to wait as long as 3 hours. In addition, marginalized groups such as
rural and inner city dwellers which were underserved in terms of landline communication, could now
access voice communication through mobile telephony although tariff costs were more expensive than a
landline (Horst, 2006).
According to the WSIS (2007, 31), by 2005, there were 2.75 million mobile subscribers in Jamaica. With
a population of about 2.6 million at that time, this placed Jamaica as the first middle-income nation to
break the 100 per cent mobile penetration barrier. The report points out that “Jamaica’s mobile
penetration is significantly above where it should be, given its average per capita income”. The very
thought that Jamaica would out-strip many developed countries in mobile communication really speaks to
the fact that there were some unique factors at work in Jamaica, including cultural factors and intensive
competition. Figure 1 shows average levels of mobile penetration in relation to developed and developing
countries. Jamaica’s mobile penetration of 106 mobile subscribers to every 100 inhabitants in 2006 (OUR
cited in PIOJ 2007) was higher than even the average for developed countries. This, however, does not
necessarily mean that each Jamaican has at least one mobile phone as some of this number represents a
population that owns more than one mobile phone. Dunn (2008) speaks to this phenomenon as a cost
saving mechanism as calls within network are normally cheaper than those between networks. In addition
to the introduction of facilitating competition, the overall enthusiasm of Jamaicans to communicate by
voice and the dominant orality of Jamaica’s culture contributed to this nation-wide mobile explosion and
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“disproved a long-established theory that small island economies were too small to sustain competition”
(WSIS 2007).
Figure 1: Mobile Cellular Telephone Subscribers per 100 inhabitants, 1994-2006
Source: International Telecommunications Union: http://www.itu.int/ITU-D/ict/statistics/ict/graphs/mobile.jpg
Other Cases of Telecommunication Liberalization in the Caribbean
Jamaica remains a model telecommunication environment that led in breaking the telecommunications
monopoly of Cable and Wireless in the region, later to be followed by other Caribbean countries such as
Trinidad and Tobago and Barbados. These, the second and third largest English Speaking islands
respectively, are more prosperous than Jamaica in economic terms. However, due to various factors, they
lagged behind Jamaica in the liberalization process and now lag behind in terms of mobile penetration.
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Barbados
Barbados is the third largest country in the English-speaking Caribbean and reported a population of
280,000 in 2005 (Cowell and Dunn 2006). Its economy relies on services sector, particularly tourism.
Cable and Wireless gained control of the Barbados Telephone Company in 1939. After nearly half a
century, the sector was nationalized in 1984. In 1991, the industry was again privatized with the sale of
the telecommunication providers to Cable and Wireless (Cowell and Dunn 2006). An MOU was signed
in 2001 to enact a phased process of telecommunication liberalization between the government and Cable
and Wireless Limited. In 2003, three companies gained mobile licences with the first, Digicel, entering
the market in 2004 (Cowell and Dunn 2006). Mobile penetration in Barbados now stands at 74%
indicating a slower rate of penetration than Jamaica in spite of having similar factors at work (Marketwire
2007).
Trinidad and Tobago
Trinidad and Tobago reported a population of 1.3 million which represents a larger market base than
Barbados but a smaller one than Jamaica. Trinidad and Tobago “is endowed with large energy reserves
and its energy sector accounts for one-third of real GDP” (Cowell and Dunn, 2006). The services sector
(including Telecommunications and ICT services) accounted for 52% of GDP in 2004.
Similar to Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago had seen ownership of its telecommunication service by private
entity monopoly from the 1880s to the 1960s. Labour unrest in the 1960s led to government purchase of
the telephone company. It later merged with a private entity to become the Telecommunications Services
of Trinidad and Tobago (TSTT).
Although the Trinidad and Tobago Telecommunications Act was passed in 2001 “providing for an open
market for telecommunication services, including conditions for fair competition”, real competition was
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not opened up until 2005 (quoted in Cowell and Dunn 2006). This could have been because the
government owned the majority stake of 51% in the TSTT with Cable and Wireless owning 49%.
Although Digicel entered the market in 2006, it has not seen the immediate gains as it did in Jamaica and
Barbados. This is partly due to critical interconnection issues between the incumbent and Digicel which
inhibited their uptake in the market.
Evident are two major differences in the liberalization process which may account for this. Firstly, the
vested interest of the government in taming the competition to its own advantage. This appears to have
caused a delay in the inevitable liberalization process. Secondly, the timing was different. TSTT had an
opportunity to learn from the experiences of liberalization in Jamaica, Barbados, Grenada and other
countries in the region and were prepared for new entrants by building customer loyalty, improving their
infrastructure and offering special promotions and advanced handsets before the entry of any competitor.
In a way, this pre-empted the type of aggressive marketing strategy with which Digicel entered other
Caribbean countries.
What can be noted in Trinidad and Tobago also is their mobile ownership levels where 83% of low
income persons surveyed used a mobile phone as opposed to Jamaica’s 93.8% in the same survey
conducted around the same time (Dunn 2007; Mallalieu and Cambridge 2007). This data may only show
some lagging on the part of Trinidad due to its later introduction of competition and may not reflect a
lower tendency to take advantage of convenient “talk”.
Summary Analysis
Although each case is different there is much to be noted from the comparison of the three English-
speaking Caribbean nations analysed. Trends in the ownership of the telecommunications reflected geo-
political trends prevalent in the eras in question. The telecommunications networks were developed in the
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region due to ‘corporatist’ relationships between private interests and the British Government “as part of
the infrastructure of colonial control” (Dunn 1991; Dunn 2004, 85). Later acquisition of the telephone
company by the regional governments in the first two decades of political independence was, in Dunn’s
view “in response to pressure of popular expectation” (Dunn 1995, 219). In this period governments
including the three highlighted here began to strengthen regional control over national resources including
telecommunications. A period of structural adjustment in the region, driven by the International Monetary
Fund (IMF), was the backdrop to privatization in all countries. In his analysis of that period Dunn
observes that “the policies of the Western multilateral lending agencies…imposed loan agreements tied to
programmes of divestment and privatization” (Dunn 1995, 220). This programme of privatization led to
the Cable and Wireless possessing majority ownership of telecommunication companies in 14 Caribbean
countries by 2000. (Dunn 2004).
Then the imperatives of WTO which led to the imposition of liberalization were quite similar. With all
countries having to rely on debt over the years in some way, there was a need to comply with the GATS.
What has been found however, in the case of this comparison, is that early compliance with the GATS
imperative correlates with a higher mobile penetration rate and, further, increased access to mobile
communication.
In Jamaica, mobile phone usage is considered “a pervasive, constant and longstanding feature” in the
lives of the majority of Jamaicans (Dunn 2007). The ubiquity of the mobile phone in Jamaica can be seen
in the fact that 93.8% of the mostly low-income persons surveyed reported to be mobile users. This high
level of penetration among the lowest earners (who would probably be earning less than the GDP per
capita of US$4,200.00) shows that the mobile phone appealed to persons of a low income.
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While Jamaica reports 106% mobile penetration (OUR quoted in PIOJ 2007), globally in 2007 mobile
penetration reached the 50% mark with 3.3 billion subscribers (Jamaica Gleaner 2007). As such, it can be
noted that Jamaica’s mobile penetration appears to be far ahead of the international average and belies the
country’s ‘developing’ status. However, the questions emerge: What Jamaicans are using this technology
for? Are Jamaicans only using it for voice communication and the perpetuation of the oral culture or are
they making use of data services and non-voice features? This paper investigates these questions
especially in relation to the youth and young adult population of Jamaica.
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2. OBJECTIVE AND DEFINITIONS
With the introduction of competition in the mobile industry in Jamaica, a larger percentage of Jamaicans
now enjoy greater access to the mobile telephony or any type of telephony at all. This includes the youth
and young adult population which would normally have low or no income. In light of this, this study
interrogates the use of mobile phones by this age group to determine their usage patterns, including their
use of mobile services and value-added features.
Research Objective and Research Questions
The overall objective of this research project is to gain a deeper understanding of mobile phone use by
young persons aged 16-27, especially as it relates to their use of mobile services and value-added features.
The following research questions formed the basis of the study:
What mobile services are Jamaican youth and young adults using and what are they using them
for?
What value-added features on mobile phones are youth and young adults using and what are they
using them for?
What trends can be found in this regard as it relates to age and gender differences?
How do these mobile services and value-added features fulfill needs in the day-to-day lives of
respondents?
Operational Definitions
The following operational definitions were used in conducting the study:
Mobile Services: A mobile service is any service offered by the service provider through the
mobile phone. A non-voice service was defined as any service available from the mobile provider
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other than placing and receiving a voice call. This would include: using the Internet, using email
and SMS messaging.
Value-Added Feature: This will be regarded as a feature which comes on the mobile phone but
does not require interaction with the service provider for usage. This would include mobile
cameras, Bluetooth connectivity, playing mobile music, using the alarm, scheduling and
appointments.
Youth / Young Adults: The term youth is normally applied to persons between and including the
ages of 15 and 24 years (UN, 2008). The term young adult can be used more loosely including
persons up to the age of 35. This study will focus on persons in these groupings, but those of a
specific age range.
For the purposes of this research study the age range will be 16-27 years. The rationale for
choosing this range was to include a range of adolescents and young adults from high school
(where they are almost completely reliant on their parents) at one end to the beginnings of their
career (where most are independent) in order to compare and contrast how the use of value-added
features and services change among youth with age.
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3. LITERATURE REVIEW
Perspectives on Technology
“The access, the mobility, and the ability to effect change are what will make the future so different from
the present… As children appropriate a global information resource, and as they discover that only adults
need learner’s permits, we are bound to find new hope and dignity in places where very little existed
before…each generation will become more digital that the preceding one…” (Negroponte, 1995)
Negroponte’s words tout children as the key-holders to the digital future due to their inclination to “being
digital”. Globally, as technology becomes a more intrusive and omnipresent aspect of the environment it
becomes almost as second-nature to children and youth for whom that technology formed part of their
socialization. This makes younger persons more in tune with advanced technology and ready to accept its
possibilities in the digital age. This also puts them in control of the technology as he continues, “The
control bits of [the] digital future are more than ever before in the hands of the young” (Negroponte
1995). How this control manifests itself as it relates to mobile services and features is the focus of this
study.
Technology has been considered by some theorists to be solutions to human problems in a particular
cultural and social context (McOmber, 1999, 138). Hutchby (2001, 444) is of this perspective, however,
he considers technologies as texts which are open to various interpretations and uses. Such uses however
are limited by affordances of the technology, which is the “functional and relational aspects which frame,
while not determining, the possibilities for agentic action in relation to an object.” ‘Affordances’ shape
possible interpretations as they provide parameters as to what can be done with the technology. The
theory of technologies as texts open for interpretation is significant in studying mobile phone usage
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among youth and young adults as the applications for them could be unique based on their age, class,
lifestyle, location and cultural context.
Motivation, Uses and the Mobile phone
The uses and ‘affordances’ of the mobile phone in the context of this group can be understood within the
framework of Maslow’s Motivation Theory and the Uses and Gratifications Theory. Abraham Maslow, in
his theory on the motivation of individuals, suggested that there are specific needs that humans are
motivated to meet. They are physiological needs, safety needs, the need to belong, esteem needs and self-
actualization. Needs would vary according to the context: the age, the gender, the location and the culture
of an individual. Maslow’s categories will give some insight as there is investigation into the needs that
are being met by mobile features and services among youth.
The uses and gratifications theory focuses on what people do with media (Chandler 1994). Similar to
Maslow’s theory, uses and gratification theory, looks at media in terms of their gratification of “social and
psychological needs of the individual… [as] people’s needs influence how they respond to a medium”
(Chandler 1994). In this vein, Denis McQuail (quoted in Chandler 1994) identified the following needs
normally gratified by various media: Information needs; Needs for personal identity; Need for integration
and social Interaction; and Entertainment Needs. As such the Uses and Gratifications Theory
complements Maslow’s in identifying needs that are specific to media usage.
Youth Culture
The period of youth is characterized by a mode of ‘in-betweenness’ which is no longer childhood, but not
yet adulthood. Youths are more likely to be unemployed, earn a low income and have unique styles of
behaviour and dress that define them as ‘different’ from other age groups. As Heaven and Tubridy (2003,
153)
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“Physical characteristics, styles of dress and behavior, language and communicative accents and numerous
other distinguishing phenomena act as triggers in practices of cultural interpretation that attribute collective
characteristics to the members of a particular community in a way that locates them within relationships of
class, gender, ethnicity and so forth.”
Youth culture is, therefore, about consumption of popular culture in order to define oneself as part of a
group, but this consumption is limited by income. Youth have to be selective in how they make use of
funds available. This research study will therefore investigate the affordances of the mobile phone in
relation to the ‘unique styles’ that make youth identifiable as a group and also in relation to the financial
constraints which are a constant for many teens and young adults. As youths transition into adulthood,
norms, priorities and habits may change. These changes, as it relates to mobile usage, will be investigated
through an additional grouping of young adults just over the “youth” age range.
Youth Culture and the Mobile Identity
A major qualitative research project conducted by Gitte Stald investigated mobile usage patterns among
15-24 year old Danes. In line with perspectives of identity as the way someone understands him/herself
and the world, he noted that “adolescents are constantly negotiating who they are, how they are that
identity and with whom they are that identity” (Stald 2008, 143). The mobile phone for the adolescent is a
symbolic link between the person and his/her social networks, which influence their identity construction.
Having a mobile phone for a young person means always being available to peers in their social group,
but also to have the information of the social group readily available by always having the phone on. In
addition to this ‘availability’ the mobile phone is also used to achieve a sense of co-presence and intimacy
among close friends as well as it is a log of personal events and activities.
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Stald’s findings give a view of the usage patterns afforded by the mobile phone among youth in Denmark.
Similar interrogation will be conducted among the Jamaican youth and young adults under study to
determine whether there are types of symbolic usage for identity construction that is taking place in this
context.
Youth and Mobile Independence
Various studies have pointed to the utilization of mobile phones by youth as a symbol of independence
from their parents. In such studies, youth were inclined to use mobile phones as a tool for private
conversations outside the ambit of parental surveillance leading to perceptions of empowerment and
independence (Lorente 2002; ITU 2004). Ironically, within it being a symbol of independence from
parental control there have been indications of dependence on and sometimes addiction to mobile phones
among youth. According to a study by the Mobile Life Report 2006, one in nine British youth surveyed
admitted to being addicted to their mobile phones in some way (LSE & Carphone Warehouse 2006).
Similarly, Shari Walsh (2007) noted that several young persons show symptoms of addiction by feeling
frustrated, angry or lost when they are unable to use the mobile phone. These sentiments can be related to
withdrawal from an addictive substance.
Beyond Voice Mobile Services
The Meaning of Texting
Within the existing literature, Short Message Service (SMS) (in the Jamaican context, referred to as
‘texting’) has been found to be a tool almost universally used by youth. In the case of Jamaica, 8 of 10
persons surveyed in the age range 18-24, used SMS regularly (Dunn 2007). However further studies by
Dunn (2008) have shown that even among young people, illiteracy affects the extent of mobile texting
among the very poor in Jamaica. Other researchers have investigated the high penetration of text message
usage among young people. According to Berg et al. (2003), text messages embody meaning for
25
teenagers. With specialized use of the language, young persons identify themselves as part of a group
with shared meanings, understandings and by extension, shared identity. Text messaging can be seen as
the note-passing of the new millennium, as they can be used to communicate messages among youth in a
regulated space such as the classroom (ITU 2004). Japanese youth primarily use SMS (also called mobile
mail) as a “means for experiencing a sense of private contact and co-presence with a loved one even in
the face of parental regulatory efforts and their inability to share any private space” (Ito and Daisuke
2005, 12).
Customization and Self-Expression
The mobile phone is a means for youth to form and express their identity through customization.
According to Katz and Sugiyama (2005) in modern society, “the telephone is taken from the back stage of
the home to the front stage of public life and now people observe the self presentation of others”. As such
the mobile phone presents itself as a status indicator and an indication of the owner’s likes, dislikes and
identity. It is through personalization with “covers, colours, icons, ringing tones, decoration, shape and
size of their mobile phones” that users are no longer just consumers but also co-creators of the mobile
medium. In this interaction with their mobile phones, users become more attached to the object.
Additional Mobile Services and Value-Added Features
As the mobile phone becomes a sort of ‘hand-held’ computer, its applications are vast and varied in
comparison to analogue phone which had only the application of voice communication. Mobile phones
are now data tools with a range of possible features and services including mobile Internet access, MP3
Music, file transfer technologies (eg. bluetooth), photography, video, graphically advanced games,
calculators, appointment diaries, notebooks, alarms, clocks and GPS services.
26
Van Veen (2007) notes that European youth exploit a wider range of services and phone features than
adults with at least 60 per cent using their mobile phones as an avenue to receive mobile ringtones and
news updates. Similarly in Asia youth are driving the adoption of mobile services and features
(Instat/MDR 2005). It was found that there was a high level of mobile messaging among Asian youth but
other non-voice services and features used included ringtones, screensavers, wallpaper, games and video.
In Jamaica, the uptake of mobile services other than SMS is limited when compared to developed
countries described. In 2007 only 3 out of 10 had used their mobile phone to download a ringtone or wall
paper. The statistics were even lower in relation to doing mobile banking transactions at 3% (Dunn 2007).
Jamaica’s mobile penetration levels show that developing countries can compare with developed ones in
certain ICT indicators. It is therefore necessary to investigate reasons for this limited usage of certain
mobile services and features among the Jamaican youth, especially since the youth in other countries have
significantly higher rates in the adoption of mobile services.
There are projections that ‘smart-phones’2 will gain in popularity in the coming years (Sacco 2007). In-
Stat’s research estimates that the number of smart-phones in use around the world will increase each year
by an average of 33 per cent. The uptake of mobile services and features therefore is expected to grow as
a tool for a mobile workforce. By studying the usage of mobile services by youth, it is necessary to
investigate whether Jamaican youth will be prepared to operate in this mobile workspace.
Jamaican Youth and Mobile Uptake
In 2006 the Jamaican youth population was 800,000 or about 30% of the overall population (PRB 2008).
Youth in Jamaica up to the age of 18 are normally pursuing some type of secondary education and so are
2 Mobile phones with numerous high-tech capabilities and applications.
27
still dependent on their parents for their economic needs. Once youth reach the age of 18 they will
normally enroll in a tertiary institution or enter the world of work. Class differences, with varying
exceptions, tend to determine which persons gain the opportunity to continue schooling as cost and entry
requirements can be major inhibitors for some low-income persons. As such, middle and upper class
Jamaican youth are normally more likely to continue schooling after the age of 18 while low-income
youth are faced with the task of sustaining themselves.
Due to continued schooling, many Jamaican youth remain dependent on their parents for survival well
into their early 20s whether residing at home or on the campus of their tertiary institution. Even after
schooling is completed and young adults begin to work they may continue to live in the family home due
to low starting income in their job and high real estate and rent costs (particularly in the urban centres).
This could continue into the mid 20s when they may start earning a more accommodating salary that will
allow them to live on their own or until they establish a family of their own. The groupings under
investigation were all middle class urban youth, and so their pattern of development into adulthood would
follow a similar path. Therefore they would have specific applications for the mobile phone that would be
indicative of their stage in life.
In the 2007 DIRSI study (Galperin & Mariscal 2007; Dunn 2007) 1182 respondents, including youth,
were surveyed regarding their mobile phone usage. Findings indicated that out of the total number of
youth mobile users, 92.4% of 18-24 year olds surveyed owned a mobile phone (Dunn 2007). This
compared to the overall average of 95.5% in all age groups showing that they were below the national
average, which may speak to the financial constraints. However, as this study was mainly among low
income persons, 92.4% is a significant level of penetration among an age group which is not likely to
have much disposable income.
28
Figure 2: Mobile Ownership among Jamaican Youth
Source: Dunn, Hopeton. (2007). Mobile Opportunities: Poverty and Telephony Access in Latin America and the
Caribbean. Country Report – Jamaica. DIRSI-TPM.
All respondents (100%) in the age range used a prepaid service which, it is felt by respondents, allows
better control of spending. Young persons were more likely to have a second hand phone, which would
have been purchased at a reduced cost or given as a gift from an older user such as a parent who may have
purchased a new one. Some 8.5% of 18-24 year olds reported owning a second-hand phone.
Source: Dunn, Hopeton. (2007). Mobile Opportunities: Poverty and Telephony Access in Latin America and the
Caribbean. Country Report – Jamaica. DIRSI-TPM.
29
The Jamaican quantitative survey conducted by Dunn (2007) provides an important framework to this
qualitative study as it gives useful statistics on the uptake of mobile phones and mobile services among
Jamaican youth. These statistics act as a starting point in investigating the mobile youth population.
30
4. METHODOLOGY
The Method
This qualitative survey was aimed at gaining deeper understanding of mobile phone use by urban middle
class young persons aged 16-27 as it relates to their use of mobile services and value-added features as
defined in Section 2.
Three focus groups and three in-depth interviews were conducted to explore the experiences and
perspectives of 19 youth and young adults. Participants were selected based on the criteria of age and
social background as this was a study of young people from middle income families.
The group sample was a mixture of male and female urban middle class youth. In some of the cases,
focus group members were already acquainted which facilitated conversation flow and some amount of
openness. Each of the following age groups was represented in the qualitative investigation:
16-18 year olds
19-21 year olds
22-24 year olds
25-27 year olds
Each focus group was asked to discuss the following broad areas in the presence of a moderator:
1. Service Provider and Type of Service
2. Acquisition Patterns
3. General usage patterns
4. Call Patterns
5. Gender/Age Differences in Mobile Usage
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6. Usage of Mobile Services and Value-Added Features
7. The Future of Mobile Telephony in Jamaica
A schedule of questions was used as a guide for the moderator (see Appendix I). Each Focus Group and
In-Depth Interview lasted about one hour and was tape-recorded. Verbatim transcriptions were done to
capitalize on the first-hand accounts of mobile usage.
The method for analysing the data was to identify trends across age and gender in determining qualitative
aspects of the youth mobile experience in Jamaica in relation to mobile services and value-added features.
32
5. PRESENTATION OF FINDINGS
This study sought to determine the “beyond voice” applications of the mobile phone to youth and young
adult experiences through the perspectives of the subjects themselves. The voices were eager to lend their
first-hand accounts to the topic. There were many new thoughts and new perspectives shared with the
researcher that perhaps would not otherwise have been unearthed. What was clear in each grouping was
the way their age determined, to some extent, their use of non-voice services and features of the mobile
phone. This section provides an overview of the findings in each grouping.
Group 1: 16-18 years old
This group consisted of two girls and three boys all still enrolled in high school. They were all of the
middle class and lived in urban areas. All used their phones for ‘calling’ and ‘texting’ with varying
degrees of use of mobile services and value-added features. Three out of five used Digicel only and one
used Cable and Wireless only. One respondent had two phones.
Cost-cutters
Members of this group felt a need to communicate with friends but still had to keep their mobile
expenditure down. This motivated them to use cost-cutting mobile services such as ‘please call me’3,
‘please credit me’4, and ‘VIP Text’
5. These were reported as the most valuable mobile services used as
they were dependent on their parents and as such their mobile phone use was financed mainly by saving
3 A service where persons can send a message to a contact requesting a call.
4 A service where persons can send a message to a contact requesting credit.
5 VIP Text is a service where a group of persons can send unlimited text messages within that group for a fixed
monthly rate.
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from lunch allowances. The most common non-voice services and features used by group members cost
little or nothing. These included the alarm clock and SMS Messaging.
Table 2: General Findings – Group 1
Group Profile Service Provider Data Features / Services Major Issues
Aged 16-18
5 participants: 3 boys and 2 girls
High School Students
Middle Class Background
3 out of 5 used Digicel only
1 out of 5 used Cable and Wireless only
1 out of 5 used Digicel and Cable and Wireless
Services
Please call me
Please credit me
‘Texting’ or SMS Messaging
VIP Text
Features
Alarm Clock (most common)
Less common features
Camera
Internet
Bluetooth
Mobile Music
Limited / Nonexistent budget
A universal personal attachment to the mobile
The mobile assists with changing levels of responsibility characteristic of the adolescent period
There is influence from peers to have a high tech mobile phone
Use of mobile music for entertainment and status (among other features)
Security and cost as issues in phone selection for females and high end features is the motivator for males
Texting
Texting was a universal application of mobile use among these group members. It was used because of
the low cost (JA$3.00 or US$0.04 per text) and its ability to accommodate ongoing conversations
between friends.
Alarm Clock
The application of the alarm clock of the mobile phone to the experiences of youth was characteristic of
their ‘in-betweenness’ with them gaining more responsibilities including waking themselves up. One
male related that he used the phone as an alarm “because my people dem [parents] stop waking me up”.
Having a cell phone with an alarm feature not only assists the adolescent in adjusting to his new
34
responsibility but also eliminated the need to purchase and maintain an alarm clock therefore, indirectly
contributing to cost-savings.
Innovating on Services
In addition to using the “please call me” and “please credit me” applications, one respondent disclosed
that the “please credit me was itself used to send a message to someone by encrypting it in the “please
credit me” request that would be sent to the contact. “Please credit me” is an free application from Digicel
where the user enters “*127*(phone number)*(amount)#”. The respondent reported that instead of
entering an amount, he would enter a series of numbers that would correlate to some letters represented
on the mobile phone keypad. The receiver would then have to decode the message (a string of numbers)
that would be translated to a message based on corresponding letters. The respondent continued to say
that it cannot be used for this purpose anymore because Digicel has limited the sum that can be requested.
Through the ‘affordances’ of the provider’s mobile services, one youth in this age group have used the
mobile phone to suit his need to communicate on a limited or non-existent budget. This finding
demonstrates the ability of youth to creatively manipulate technology to their advantage in light of their
financial constraints.
Mobile Instruments
Access to a wide range of mobile features is dependent on the type of mobile instrument the user has.
High tech instruments normally come at a high cost that would be out of the reach of the average high
school student. The females in this age group used less value-added features, particularly because of the
type of instrument they owned. The girls only reported to using the alarm feature and sometimes the
Internet.
35
Features such as camera, Internet and bluetooth were reported by the males as the most important
motivation in selecting their instrument whereas the girls were more concerned with cost. Mobile music
was seen as necessary in filling a void when the young males found themselves bored: “You haffi have
the music thing”. Respondents also noted that boys in their age range were more inclined to use their MP3
players (on their mobile phone) for competitions on who has the best songs.6 Winning one of these
competitions would increase the person’s status within their peer group. The use of mobile music shows a
pattern where the mobile phone is used as an interactive entertainment device, keeping the user occupied
during moments of boredom. This raises is role as new media replacing more traditional media forms.
Among girls it was evident that, although their phones were not equipped with these higher-end features
due to cost constraints, they did not want it to be readily noticed that their phone cannot accommodate
MP3 ringtones. Both girls reported that they kept their phones on silent due to peer pressure. One
explained that with “polyphonic ringtones, everybody else have ‘Pon di edge’7 and all sorts of things”,
she felt pressured to keep her phone on silent to avoid being ridiculed or not being considered “cool”. For
these youth, it was not only the MP3 feature that determined status but also the type of music that was
used. The newer and more popular the song the “cooler” the user was considered. The user would gain
“props” or approval from his or her peers especially if the ringtone was one that no one else had yet. This
raised the desire among this age group to ‘stand out to fit in’. As with fashion, standing out with
something brand new and unique was a factor in “fitting in” among their friends and classmates.
6 This phenomenon evolved out of competitions where DJ’s would compete with each other, also a feature of the
youth and young adult culture. The winner would be the one with the best and latest songs.
7 Popular Jamaican song in late 2007 by the dancehall artiste ‘Busy Signal’.
36
The female student who was teased by her peers for not having a “proper phone” (in this case an MP3
enabled phone) would make the young adult feel left out among her peers. She felt pressured to keep her
use of this phone “under the radar” due to the influence of her peers. In her consideration of perspectives
by her peers she said: “sometimes you kind of feel left out but you just have to look at it and say you can’t
really afford it and at least you can receive a call and send a call”. Regardless of her desire to fit in, the
main determinant of her handset was the cost.
Mobile Phone Theft
Some members of this group said that mobile phones can do more harm than good. It was explained that,
although it was desirable to have a high tech mobile phone, it could cause the owner to be targeted by
thieves. In the words of one respondent: “some people have the high tech phones … and it attracts
thieves.” Youth of this age are vulnerable to mobile theft as they would have no regular access to a car
and they would be likely to travel from Point A to Point B by foot or by public transport. In addition,
because of the overwhelming pressure to have a high end phone, mobile theft in secondary schools is a
growing problem. At least one respondent had a phone stolen from her schoolbag while in school.
The Mobile Relationship
In addition to the features and services of mobile phone, another ‘beyond voice’ application was the
relationship between the user and the mobile. Overall, it was noted that the participants in this group had a
sense of personal attachment to their mobile phone. All felt their mobile phones needed to always be on
(except for when they were in school) to facilitate regular access to them by parents and friends. The real
test of this relationship, however, came with the investigation of how respondents felt when they did not
have their phone with them. It was felt this query would unearth some true sentiments of personal
attachment levels. All 16 to 18 year olds reported feeling some negative sentiment when they did not have
their mobile phones. Their responses are outlined below:
37
Male 1: Lost
Female 1: Naked
Male 2: Lost
Female 2: Like I left part of by being at home … like only half of me walking.
Male 3: It feels like something’s missing
It was interesting that such strong metaphors and expressions were used to describe the sentiments
associated with not having their phone. As this was probed it was discovered that the phone provides the
dual function as a link to companions and as a companion itself. Without it there is an overwhelming
sentiment that something is not right, that ‘I am exposed’ or that ‘I am incomplete’. This shows the
overall utility of a mobile phone to these adolescents as it represents a symbolic link to the outside world.
Group 2: 19-21 year olds
The six respondents in the case of the second focus group were all tertiary-level urban middle class
students. Four respondents used Digicel only and one used Cable and Wireless only. One respondent had
one of each. All respondents in this group used Digicel as their primary service provider. Digicel was
favoured because of the range of services available for cost-cutting. One respondent who used Cable and
Wireless stated she wanted to switch. Digicel was unanimously considered the better provider because the
provider offers better and more convenient services such as Webtext, which is a free mechanism for
sending a text message from the Internet.
Respondents in this group reported using the phone for calling and texting with a few reporting the use of
other applications such as cameras and mobile music. Texting was a tool used for “keeping relationships
going” at a low cost. All reported that their cell phone has replaced their need for an alarm clock.
38
Table 3: General Findings – Group 2
Group Profile Service Provider Data Services / Features Major Issues
Aged 19-21
6 participants: 3 boys and 3 boys
Tertiary Level Students
Middle Class background
4 out of 6 used Digicel only
1 out of 6 had Cable and Wireless only
1 out of 6 used Digicel and Cable and Wireless
Services
Please call me
Please credit me
Texting or SMS Messaging
Web Text
VIP Text
Features
Alarm Clock
Mobile Games
Camera
Mobile music
Bluetooth
Ringtones
Limited / non-existent budget (which meant no use of more expensive services such as mobile Internet)
Mobile as a source of entertainment and mischief
All but one felt a sense of personal attachment to their mobile
Mobile phones used as a fashion statement
The mobile as a facilitator of security and a threat to security at the same time including “hacking and viruses”
Texting
Cost cutting mobile services were the most popular including text messaging, VIP Texting and Web Text.
Respondents used text messaging when they could not talk (such as in a class) and also to save money.
In this group the impact of mobile phone use on intimate relationships was more prevalent than other
groups. Text messages were described as an important factor in relationship-building to keep
communication lines open at a distance. It also afforded the ability to store such messages allowing the
user to reminisce when going through them.
Text messages were also used negatively as evidence in lovers’ squabbles when one person goes back on
his/her word. Text messages were said to have a greater impact than oral communication in some
instances:
39
“If you have something to say … good or bad but seeing the words kinda connect more with the person, it
is more effective than hearing cause you know you have it in the phone….And if the person refuse to
answer the phone, then you can send a message cause you know that it will go through.”
The use of text messaging provides something more permanent and provides a greater impact than the
spoken word in virtual confrontations.
Mobile Hacking
Bluetooth was used by one respondent for amusement to “hack other phones”. In explaining the process –
facilitated by specialized mobile software, the 20 year-old youth said that:
“The phone has to have Bluetooth of course and it has to be powered on. You would pick it up and you
connect. You have to bond with the other phone that’s the only catch. Once you bond with the other phone
you can read their messages, view their phonebook, you can activate games, you can change their volume,
you can play their music, as long as it bonds with the other phone.”
This is an example of the way the mobile phone provides an entertainment source for a mischievous
adolescent. It also raised the point that, with phones becoming mini-computers information security risks
exist in relation to hacking as well as mobile viruses.
Other Services and Value-Added Features
Mobile Internet was not utilized at all by the respondents, because it was considered “too expensive”.
This was in contrast to the high school students who did use mobile Internet services. This was an
interesting contradiction because one would expect that older persons would have more disposable
income. This contradiction could be explained either by the fact that older students have more personal
responsibilities and not necessarily a much larger allowance from parents. An alternative explanation
would be that older respondents are more inclined to make cost-efficient use of their mobile phones.
40
Mobile Instruments as Fashion Trends
Respondents noted the propensity of some persons to change their cell phones based on the newness and
popularity making it appear to be a fashion trend:
“… the phones are really like a fashion trend because … you have people that don’t keep their cell phone
for more than a year. Every year they change their cell phone and they have like a Motorola Razr now and
then there is a Sliver and so they change out. So they have to keep up with the time and change that and get
the new one.”
This again shows the role of the mobile phone in fulfilling the need of the young adult to “stand out to fit
in”. Having the cell phone of the latest model with unique capabilities is a fashion trend in itself and can
assist in gaining approval from peers.
Mobile Phones and Security
Respondents of both sexes noted the utility of the mobile phone for security but were also aware of the
converse perspective that having a high end phone can make you a target. This group was also more
prone to travelling by bus or on foot. One of the respondents related the following view: “If I am on the
road now at a bus stop in Half-Way Tree and my phone ring I am not going to take it out because mi
‘fraid a man look and I become a target”. A female agreed: “I believe it is not as secure as people make it
to be.”
The Mobile Relationship
Similar to the first focus group, the majority had negative sentiments when they did not have their phone
such as feeling “disconnected from the world”, “naked” and as if “something is missing”. This was
elaborated as feeling that you are missing something that you really need: “I’m missing my calls; I can’t
get to text when I want to, I can’t even get to call when I want to so it is kind of like I am disconnected or
41
missing from the world”. The respondent describes that not having her cell phone means not having her
link to the outside world, and missing essential day-to-day information.
One of the males showed a different type of dependence by stating that: “The thing is whenever I leave
my phone at home you know it’s not the calls that bother me it is the time. I always seem to want to know
the time whenever I don’t have my phone.” This shows a dependence not only on the mobile phone as a
link but also through its value-added feature – the digital clock. The more useful features that appear on a
mobile phone and the more it eliminates the need to buy a wristwatch, to have a physical address book, to
buy an alarm clock, and other physical tools used to make life easier. People appear to be becoming more
increasingly dependent on mobile phones for this reason. This participant’s attachment had little to do
with the mobile phone as symbolic link to his network of friends. It was more as its utility as a convergent
tool with a range of features in one central portable, handheld device.
One female, however, did not exhibit these traits of dependence on her mobile phone at all. In fact, she
showed some signs of aversion. This was evident in her mobile phone use:
“I do not like cell phones. I am being really honest; I will buy the cheapest cell phone you will find. I feel
like that is all I really need to call somebody and probably send a text message once in a while. I don’t like
getting phone calls. I am one of those people who probably in the middle of the day I just shut off my cell
phone and throw it in the bottom of my bag.”
This is an alternative to the type of relationship that others in this age group had with their phones. When
probed further, there was an indication that not being available by mobile phone led to a greater sense of
freedom from parental control. The reason given for this apparent aversion to mobile phone use was:
“…because of my parents. When I got my phone I was about 15 and one of the things that they said to me
was ‘when you go out I want to know where you are’ and they lecture me about the whole safety issue.”
In rebelling against her parents’ use of her mobile phone to know where she is (implicitly meaning that
they want to control her movements) the respondent terminates the possibility of any real-time link to
42
anyone through her mobile phone. Her negative sentiments towards having her cell phone around and on
are linked directly to her relationship with her parents and their perception of the mobile phone as a
control device.
Group 3: 22-24 year olds
In the case of the 22-24 year olds there were only three respondents as the three additional respondents
that were expected did not show up. This was handled through successive interviews with the 2 females
and 1 male who did attend. All were urban middle class university students who were also part-time
workers. This introduced the aspect of an income, though limited, that was independent of what parents
provided.
Table 4: General Findings – Group 3
Group Profile Service Provider Data Features / Services Major Issues
Aged 22-24
3 participants: 1 boy and 2 girls
Students with Part time Jobs
Middle Class Background
3 out of 3 used Digicel only
Services
Please call me
Texting or SMS Messaging
Mobile Radio
Web Text
Features
Personalized and MP3 Ringtones
Alarm Clock
Mobile Games
Camera
Limited budget but some independently-earned income leads to some choice in the instrument selected
This group wields greater power in the decision making process
Cost-saving still an important factor in the use of services
There is a range of levels of attachment to the mobile phone
There are young persons who are averse to the increasingly convergent mobile phones
All respondents in this age group used Digicel as their mobile provider. It was considered that Digicel had
more options for the low budget consumer, as well as more user- and customer-friendly service. The male
in the group went further to say that the Cable and Wireless monopoly led to the “exploitation of the
43
Jamaican people, so when Digicel entered the market it was a life saver for me.” The strong language
used here is a microcosm of the general sentiments of many Jamaicans in relation Digicel’s entry. Digicel
is still seen by the mass of the population as the champion for non-elite mobile users and Cable and
Wireless the opposite.
The two girls were more inclined to making use of features such as the alarm, the camera, the Internet,
calculator and spreadsheets. Internet was not used regularly but was considered useful on the rare
occasion, for example in the event of a hurricane where there is no electricity. Both girls opted for a high-
tech sleek phone. The male felt that phones were to be used for the purpose of placing and receiving calls
only and was not preoccupied with the look. This reflected in the type of phone he had which was a low-
end inexpensive model. In his own words:
“My usage of the cell phone is all about receiving and sending calls, it has no other usage to me. Phones are
developed at such a stage where it is now being used for camera facilities … games, use of storing media
files, even storage for documents and stuff like that. But my phone as again I will repeat is used for its
traditional usage, what it was intended for originally, as a means of sending and receiving calls.”
This shows for the first time a male who was not interested in value-added features. His disinterest, he
expressed, had to do with his aversion to a convergent device. This introduces an opinion not heard from
any other respondent in the previous groupings, that is, ‘a phone should be a phone’ and nothing more. He
believed the range of emergent features added no value to his mobile phone usage.
Texting
The use of texting was applied to the specific stage in life for some members of this group as an
opportunity to maintain contact while appearing professional. Text messaging is useful at work where one
may be under surveillance by superiors:
44
“I was working earlier today and my sister called me, and the lady that employs me was nearby. I am kind
of new there and I didn’t want to be on the phone on a personal call asking her if she picked up my
prescription yet. So I texted.”
It was also reported as useful when one is not interested in having a long conversation. “I also use it if I
don’t want to have a conversation with that person. I just want to say hi so they know you care about
them but you don’t have to encourage this long conversation.”
Mobile Relationships
In this group there were three different levels of attachment to mobile phones. One female expressed
extreme affinity towards the phone. It appeared to be a comforting companion without which she felt cut
off from the world. The other female respondent, normally had her phone on silent, and ignored it until
she needed to make a call or use one of the features. This again was in avoidance of the parental link
although the avoidance of control was not as strong. The male found the phone annoying and intrusive
and was glad when he did not have the phone with him. Insights on the varying levels of attachment
indicated are presented in Box 1.
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Box 1: Varied Levels of Attachment Towards the Mobile Phone in the 22-24 Age Group8
Affinity – Janelle
“I love my cell phone, I love using it. I keep it on me if I’m walking even if I’m in my house moving from room to room.”
“I like to just look at it, sometimes it is just to have something familiar near me… When I have my phone and hear it ring I feel some type of comfort…I guess I feel comforted by the fact that I have access to others.”
“I feel lost without it. I would find myself reaching for it like to calculate something … for me not having it is a burden, I feel cut off from the world.”
Indifference – Nardia
“Basically, in the morning I put it [my mobile phone] in my bag and it stays in there all day, unless I’m nearby my bag and I hear it ring. I have the ring on just one beep.”
“My friends complain that it is called a mobile for a reason, so I should always have it with me. It’s neither here nor there for me because the people that usually call me are the people I usually see on a daily basis like my friends that work at the lab… and then there’s my mommy. She calls me for the least thing. ‘You know the flowers need to water?’ She usually calls for stuff like that. There is really no need to keep the phone on me because sometimes it is not urgent.”
Aversion – Mark
“…it [the mobile phone] ensnares you in this interconnected world. It’s like you are trapped. They are constantly calling you…. It’s an intervention in your personal space. Because of this you don’t have time for your self anymore.”
“My phone is used by other persons as a means of getting information. I’m a tutor and people consider me as someone who knows stuff. So people tend to call me to get information to find out stuff to help them do something. That annoys me.”
“The majority of the times, I thank God when I don’t have the phone, thank God that person did not get to contact me today… .With it I feel trapped.”
Group 4: 25-27 year olds
This group was made up of three males and two females of an urban middle class background. All were
full-time workers and therefore all had a regular income. Four out of five respondents used Digicel as
their primary provider. This group took a more analytical stance when discussing the differences between
8 All names are pseudonyms.
46
the providers.9 Digicel was considered more innovative and Cable and Wireless more reactive in terms of
the offering of appealing services. But in the words of one participant, Digicel is no longer offering the
best promotions because they are now comfortable in the marketplace:
“Digicel came out with better phones and better coverage and they used to offer you special incentives like
free text messages for a month and some other special deals. Now that they have the bulk of the market,
Digicel offers nothing because they don’t have to. No matter what Cable and Wireless offers they will
never actually get somebody to switch from Digicel because most of the people that they speak to are on
the Digicel network.”
Table 5: General Findings – Group 4
Group Profile Service Provider Data Services / Features Major Issues
Aged 25-27
5 participants: 3 boys and 2 girls
Full-time workers
3 out of 5 used Digicel only
1 out of 5 used Cable and Wireless only
1 out of 5 had both Cable and Wireless and Digicel
Services
Please call me
Texting or SMS Messaging
Synchronization
Features
Alarm Clock
Calendars
Appointment Schedules
Camera
This is the first group where the regular use of text messaging was not universal.
The work life dominated the mobile experiences of these respondents
Men in this group were more likely to believe that the mobile phone only gives an ‘illusion of security’
Texting
All but two respondents used text messaging regularly giving reasons that (1)“Texting doesn’t work for
me because I love to talk” and (2) “I have no patience... sometimes I would just dial the number instead of
9 Interestingly, the third mobile provider – MiPhone – never emerged in discussions as an option for the youth
interviewed
47
trying to send a text message”. Text messaging was used in “all circumstances” by one male respondent.
In his words:
“I hold endless text conversations with friends. It’s kind of almost like MSN10
on your
phone .... Also if somebody is in a situation that they cannot answer the phone but they
want some information, for example you are at a party and the person cannot hear you
and asking where you at, you can just text him.”
Messaging therefore fits neatly into the youth’s entertainment-driven culture. It also relates easily to other
norms and customs such as instant messaging.
In the case of this group, the women were keener to have a basic mobile phone for just sending and
receiving calls. Only one of the three men had the same perspective stating that he just needed a phone to
talk. The other two males required a camera phone and other advanced features such as being able to
synchronize it with the office computer. Camera phones were used by two of the respondents as a
convenient way to capture unique situations. Other value-added features used were work-related such as
calendars and appointment schedules. Mobile music (MP3 players or mobile radio) was not used by the
members of this group as their use of features appeared to be more business oriented than entertainment-
oriented.
Mobile Phones and Security
The mobile phone was considered to be a tool of security mainly by the women, with one even adding
that it made her feel more “socially secure”, in the sense that people are liable to judge you based on what
you have. The men were less inclined to view physical security as a benefit of the mobile phone. In a
comical response one male participant stated that:
10 MSN is a popular online Instant Messaging Service.
48
“In the case of a minor situation, something that is not life threatening, having a phone would be a plus but
before I had a phone I would have found some way to ride it out. But if it was something critical like a man
in front of me with a gun, mi cannot take out mi phone and shot the man.”
The converse argument was noted with the consideration that a high end cell phone could make you a
target.
Mobile Relationships
Another youth with an aversion similar to Mark in Group 3 stated that mobile phones “invade your
privacy”.
“they feel that they have the right to invade your space when they feel like and I have found a problem and
it could be based on my own circumstance or it could be based on the groups that I have been affiliated
with that requires communication with a lot of people and so for example when I used to live on hall, we
had students calling at 12 o’ clock, 1 o’ clock in the nights with different issues and I felt that that was
really a problem.”
So it appears that where persons, particularly men, occupied some leadership role there would be a lot of
incoming communication facilitated by the cell phone. We saw this exhibited in Mark in Group 3. It
seems from these two cases that the continuous inflow of calls contributed to this aversion. On the whole
members of this group were not inclined to have extreme emotions when they did not have their phone.
They only noted that depending on responsibilities, not having your phone could impede your progress.
Even in this perspective is another indication of the business-oriented view of the mobile phone.
49
6. ANALYSIS OF FINDINGS
Overview of Trends
Across all groups the primary purpose of the mobile phone was to send and receive calls. Non-voice
applications included SMS Messaging, cost-cutting services and non-tariffed features. The following
overall trends were noted in relation to age and gender.
Digicel: Prevalent, Popular and Fashionable
Among the notable trends was the prevalence of Digicel as the preferred mobile provider among
respondents. Its popularity is reported by respondents to be due to its innovative and creative service
offerings and therefore interlinked with the use of mobile services among respondents. Digicel appears to
be the more flexible option in the sense that it appears to always be coming up with new ways to cater to
low-budget customers.
There was the suggestion in one of the focus groups, however, that the reason for the popularity of
Digicel had more to do with the fact that it is the dominant network. This would make it generally cheaper
to use as most contacts are already on that network. In addition youth, with the yearning to fit in with their
peers, would be likely to subscribe to the same network as their friends. As such, even subscribing to
Digicel can be considered a fashion statement or the ‘in thing’ among youth.
Cost-Cutting Services
Cost-cutting services were among the most prevalent services used. This included the ‘please call me’ the
‘please credit me’, Webtext and the ‘VIP text’. The relevance of these services reduced with higher age
ranges. These services were hardly utilized by the income earning 25-27 year old group. Members of this
50
group were also less inclined to make use of text messages. There was a low incidence across the board of
more expensive services such as the mobile Internet.
Texting
Text messaging was an almost universal application among the sample as a low cost mobile service. Only
two respondents did not use text messaging regularly and they were both in the oldest age group. The
application of text messaging was to gain a sense of co-presence with friends and partners when they
were at a distance. It was also used to create a private space for the sender and the recipient even in the
presence of others and in a regulated environment such as school or work.
The 19-21 age group most readily saw its application to intimate relationships as a way to store messages
as ‘lovers’ keepsakes’. This could indicate that intimate relationships are a high priority for students of
college age, but it could also reflect a greater amount of openness in this particular group in not being shy
to talk about their relationships. It is significant though that this group, without any prompting, readily
suggested the application of text messages to their relationships with boyfriends / girlfriends. Therefore
using it in their relationships appears to be a high priority for them.
Value-Added Features
It was noted by respondents that the mobile phone has replaced the physical alarm clock and physical
wrist watch. In some cases it also replaces the appointment diary. In these ways, the mobile phone is
contributing to a world that is becoming more and more digital with less need for some physical objects.
It can be noted that with the convergence of a multiplicity of services in a single portable object, users are
more likely to incorporate its features into elements of their daily life. For example, the digital clock on
the mobile phone eliminates the need for a wristwatch and because the phone is always with you anyway,
you would be inclined to make use of it and not a wristwatch. There is evidence, however, that a result of
51
the convergence of these features there would be increased dependence and emotions of attachment to
mobile devices.
In almost all age groups, females were more likely to have a phone without high end capabilities. The
only exception was the 22-24 age group where the male involved had no appreciation for the increasingly
convergent mobile phone. The finding, however, is not to be discarded due to this inconsistency, because
it does show an overall indication that men are more likely to own feature-rich mobile phones. In the
event of the younger females they wanted to have a feature-rich phone but could not afford it. They also
felt peer pressure to have a high end phone. Females in the 22-24 age group, on the contrary, had a
disposable income and therefore more control over the phones they purchased. Ladies in the 25-27 age
group had no interest in having anything more than a ‘basic phone’. So the determination whether one has
a feature-rich mobile had to do in the first place with being able to afford it, and then in wanting to have
it. Cost was more of a factor for the youngest females than any other group.
Another observation is that whereas the main use of mobile features and services for the lower age groups
(16-18 and 19-21) was for social contact, the older groups mixed social networking with business related
applications. Services such as synchronization and email were used by members of the 25-27 age groups
whereas spreadsheets and calculators were the business applications of mobile features among the 22-24
age group.
‘Out of the Box’ Applications
Respondents in the two youngest age groups found innovative ‘out of the box’ applications to mobile
services and features. Through the unconventional use of the ‘please credit me’ application and through
blue-tooth hacking, the younger respondents used everyday mobile applications to fulfill specific needs.
This supports the sentiment that young persons handle technology like second nature to achieve their
52
particular ends and is in line with Negroponte’s observation that children and young adults tend to be in
control of modern technology.
Mobile Relationships
There appears to be a wide scale of commonality in relation to attachment or aversion to the mobile phone
among respondents. There were different levels identified here as: affinity, indifference and aversion. In
terms of affinity, this extreme level of attachment to the mobile phone appeared to be strongest among the
youngest respondents (16-18 years). The older the group, the more likely one or more persons would have
indifference or aversion to the mobile phone. In the final group, among the 25-27 year olds, none of the
respondents used extreme metaphors and expressions to describe their feelings when detached from their
phone.
Figure 4: The Mobile Attachment Scale
Mobile indifference, in at least one case, was affected by the relationship of the mobile phone to parents.
If the mobile phone appears to be a tool for parents to make persistent contact, whether for control or
other types of communication, an indifferent attitude may emerge. These indifferent attitudes due to
parental control appeared in girls and speak to the tendency of some Jamaican parents to be over-
Mobile Attachment Scale
Affinity Indifference Aversion
53
protective of their daughters while not being protective of their boys. It would appear that an indifferent
attitude would emerge when the mobile phone failed to be a symbol of independence for these young
girls.
Boys appear to be more likely to have an aversion to the mobile phone. This appears to be directly related
to their role as a leader among other young people, and so information and advice from them was in high
demand. The two boys considered the mobile phone, when used in this way to be an unwelcome invasion
of privacy. When girls exhibited averse attitudes to mobile phone it again correlated with the use of the
mobile tool for control by parents. Overall, the relationship with the mobile was directly connected to the
interrelations it facilitate, strengthening the viewpoint that is it is a symbol of social networks and
relationships. It was ironic that in spite of an indifferent or aversive attitude towards the mobile phone,
they all had a mobile in the first place and they all carried it around with them.
The Mobile Phone: Fulfilling Youth and Young Adult Needs
For members of the sample, the mobile phone appears to have several applications to suiting their needs
outside of its primary usage as a form of voice communication. A prevalent factor for many of the youth
in the sample was their financial constraints. Mobile services such as mobile email, mobile Internet and
various types of mobile commerce were not a priority for these persons as they mainly had a need to
communicate within low income budgets. This could explain the patterns of limited uptake related to
mobile services among youth.
There was much higher uptake for cost-saving mobile services. Such services appear to be tailor-made for
the low-budget persons that would be in the group under study. This would be a contrast to the more
developed countries of Europe and Asia where the uptake for mobile commerce applications of the
mobile is higher among youth. As a part of a middle-income less developed country Jamaican youth, even
54
if part of the middle class, would not be able to afford mobile commerce applications. They would more
likely be preoccupied with using the most basic and inexpensive features. This speaks to the need to make
costs for mobile Internet and similar services cheaper so that they can be accessed by more youth and
young adults. Further, a critical need that the mobile phone did not fulfill to any great extent was
information. Although it made information relative to the individual available through communication
with contacts, the range of information tools available on the Internet was hardly used due to the cost.
Mobile services assisted some youths in their pursuit of fulfilling their need to belong. The mobile phone
assisted them in ‘fitting in’ by being a symbolic link to their friends and family and therefore assisting in
reflexive identity construction. In addition, peer pressure was an influence in selection of the instrument
for younger groups. The newer and more technologically advanced your phone, the great the approval
from friends and peers.
Mobile music was a tool, especially among boys in their bid to ‘stand out to fit in’ by having the latest
songs on their mobile phone. Popular music is a part of what is fashionable among youth. In the same
way the walkman was a portable novelty item two decades ago, now the musical mobile phone is the
novelty item of choice for exhibiting musical tastes to the world. As music is a significant factor of the
Jamaican culture and a part of youth trends, the popularity of mobile music among youth (especially those
below 25) is not surprising.
Security was a motivating factor for some to have a mobile phone. However, in a strong contradiction,
security was also threatened by having one. The fact that the item can make one feel physically secure
and physically insecure at the same time is a paradox of the technology. This is in line with Mick and
Fournier’s theory that there are paradoxes to technology (1998, 123). In spite of this paradox, the youth
continue to carry mobile phones which are apt to attract thieves and which could threaten security.
55
The need for entertainment was also fulfilled by mobile services through the use of games, bluetooth
information sharing, cameras, mobile music and by communication itself. The mobile phone had no doubt
become a challenge to traditional entertainment media such as television and radio due to its portability
and the multiplicity of features which it can hold. The advantage of the mobile phone over these media is
that it is a personal tool and many of the features such as the camera and mailbox would be able to store
information that is unique and special to the individual. This is not possible with mass media.
Overall though, the main ‘beyond voice’ function of the mobile phone for the young persons interviewed
was in simply ‘being there’ as symbol of their social contacts and as a handy companion which physically
and aesthetically becomes a part of the person. It is a memory store and game box that provides
companionship in times of boredom or can be a link to a companion in a time of boredom. But in its
omnipresence and attachment to the human, it becomes an object of dependence especially for younger
respondents creating new needs as it fulfills old ones.
In the overall analysis it has been found that the younger the age of respondents, the more likely they
would be to prove Negroponte’s theory that “the control bits of [the] digital future are more than ever
before in the hands of the young”. There was also evidence that as youth move into adulthood their
control of the mobile phone, especially among males, would translated into the utilization of a range of
business tools.
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7. CONCLUSIONS
It is clear that mobile features and services have become part of the lived experiences of youth in Jamaica.
The phone is a part of their social reality which coincides neatly with other aspects of youth culture. As it
relates to the youngest groups, however, there are constants within their culture and way of life that
impacted on the way they see and use the mobile phone including dependence on parents and cost
considerations.
Although the most common usage of the mobile phone is voice communication, there is evidence that
youth are using other mobile services and features in their everyday life. The mobile phone is becoming
an increasingly convergent device with layers of available tools, even in the most basic instrument. As
the tiny device begins to hold more features the more valued it is by the owner and the more likely it
would be considered valuable by a thief. Dependence on the convergent object which is at once a
memory box, appointment diary, clock, camera, address book, etc, is reflected in the attachment that
many of the respondents have to the mobile phone, and conversely feelings of detachment when they do
not have it.
There were differences in usage by age range as young groups were more likely to make use of cost-
cutting services. Across the board, however, the features and services used regularly were of low or no
cost. Texting was the most prevalent of the services while others which were used were related to
specific needs, such as the alarms and games.
There were differentiated levels of mobile attachment found in the form of:
- Affinity
- Indifference
57
- Aversion
Affinity was the most common level of attachment among respondents. Lower levels of attachment came
about due to some negative association with the connections facilitated by the mobile phone.
Mobile features and services were used as a fashion statement for younger groups to gain the approval of
their peers and as tools for business and recreation for older groups. Peer pressure and cost constraints
were strong determinants of mobile phone usage among younger groups whereas older groups appeared
to exercise their own choice more often.
As it relates to mobile services and value-added features, Jamaican youth show an inclination to
manipulate the technology to their benefit as it appears to be second-nature to many of them. It is
encouraging that the youth and young adults who are demonstrating such high levels of understanding
and interacting with the technology will be the leaders of the coming decade. However, there needs to be
a greater thrust towards reduction in costs for mobile Internet and similar information-rich services which
can be a vital information source for young persons. As we look towards a future where mobile
broadband, mobile work and mobile education will be commonplace, it is important to capitalize on the
propensity of many of these young people to make use of technology in innovative and creative ways
towards the development of Jamaican society.
58
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APPENDIX I
Focus Group Schedule of Questions
Introduce moderator and give background to the research study.
Ask each person for self introduction including name, age and occupation and what type of a cell phone
user you consider yourself to be.
1. How long have you had a cell phone?
2. Which service provider do you use?
3. How did you get the phone you have right now?
4. What goes into your decision when you consider buying a phone?
5. Who do you call the most?
6. Do you find mobile usage expensive?
7. Do you rely on your phone a lot for business?
8. Do you use your phone differently from your parents?
9. Is there anything else you notice about how young people use their cell phones?
10. Does having a cell phone make you feel more secure?
11. Do men use their cell phones differently from women?
12. Are you comfortable with other people going through your cell phone?
13. What (other) effect does having a cell phone have on intimate relationships?
14. How do you feel when you don’t have your cell phone?
15. Do you use text messaging? When and Why?
16. Do you use a special ‘texting language’?
62
17. What other features on mobile phones do you find useful?
18. How different would your life be if you could not access these features?
19. Do you use special command features like please call me and top you up? How important are
these features to you?
20. Do you use Bluetooth a lot? In what ways?
21. Do you download ringtones, games, wallpaper? Anything else? Why?
22. What other ways do you find to personalize your cell phone?
23. How important is a ringtone? What does it say about you?
24. Do you keep music on your phone? Why and what type?
25. Do you use your cell phone to participate in television and radio competitions? And for voting for
reality television series?
26. How do these add-on services affect different parts of your life?
27. How do you see the phone of mobile phone usage in Jamaica, especially as it relates to these
value-added features?
The question schedule was flexible as often issues emerged before the schedule called for them. The
sequence of questioning and probing was therefore dynamic while still covering all areas outlined.