CIAO DATE: 03/2009
December 2008
Conventional wisdom holds that the growing influence of mobile media has contributed to the steady dissolution of society’s civic bonds. The creeping sense of disengagement was documented recently in a Duke University study that found we are feeling far more socially isolated today than we were two decades ago.1 The more we hunker down by checking stocks and scores on our iPhones, sharing our photos on Flickr and jabbering into our Razr phones, the less likely we are to hold a conversation with a stranger, volunteer at a homeless shelter or join a political cause. Or so the argument goes. But what if the reverse is true? Growing evidence suggests that people— particularly the young—have begun using mobile devices in ways that help to strengthen civic engagement, undergird social participation and buttress our sense of belonging to something that transcends the self and the clan. This report will look at how mobile technology offers opportunities to broaden our ties to communities, both virtual and traditional brick-and-mortar.
Resource link: Civic Engagement on the Move [PDF] - 757K