‘Techno Addicts: Young Person Addiction to Technology‘ describes the disruptive effect that technology addiction can have on positive attitudes towards learning. While students expressed little concern of addiction, technology obsession is hindering spelling skills, encouraging plagiarism and disrupting classroom learning.

‘Techno Addicts: Life Style Through Technology‘ examines the effects of information communication technology (ICT) on individuals. Using quantitative data from over 1,200 respondents across a broad spectrum of society ranging from lower income groups to top managers and directors, we found shocking information about how individuals adopt technology for work, personal use, and pleasure.

Both can be downloaded from Sigel Press.

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With the rise in popularity of social networking and Smart Phones, people are feeling the need to be connected to the Internet at all times. I spoke to Sky News about my recent study on the effects of “Information Overload”, a phenomenon where people feel the need to be constantly connected, whether by mobile phone or home computer. As more people begin using Smart Phones – phones that have functionality to utilise the Internet and send messages – the number of people suffering from “Information Overload” will increase along with it.

This addiction to technology and the Internet often comes at the expense of one’s health and social life. People who are constantly switched on will likely see a negative impact on their overall productivity, even with tasks that they would consider to be routine. In speaking with Sky, I explained that individuals who are in “Information Overload” often shun others around them, including family. They tend to feel lethargic and possibly have trouble getting out of bed, feeling that they can no longer be asked to do anything for anyone due to lethargy. Another effect of this disorder is increased anxiety and potentially depression.

In the study it was revealed that one-third of our sample suffered from some form of technological addiction. People who suffer from Information Overload will often feel that they need to connect as soon as they wake up in the morning, starting their day by checking their e-mail or various other online presences every few minutes throughout the day.

What types of work can be done virtually? Professional journalists can now easily freelance for multiple newspapers, using technology to complete and submit their tasks in a proficient and professional manner. Other sorts of IT, design, technical and artistic tasks can also be done virtually. The key work is ‘tasks’—transactional tasks are the type of work best done virtually, and when travel is no longer necessary for these, costs are reduced.

When more strategic, transformational issues need to be addressed, it can be very difficult to meet and build consensus virtually. It can be tough to get a shared view across over video conferencing—it just isn’t easy to get everyone on board. People aren’t motivated in the same way as face-to-face interactions in team groups. While information can be exchanged virtually, one can’t build consensus or value.

It’s interesting to note that, in spite of improved communications technologies, business executives are traveling on planes, trains and automobiles as much as ever to meet in person. They wouldn’t do this if they could accomplish their goals without traveling by meeting virtually, if only because there would be significant cost savings on travel.

In order to execute strategy and lead in a transformational way, executives don’t just need to be architects for the way forward, they also need to build consensus and get a commitment for the way forward. The issues executives face aren’t always clear-cut and could be contentious. In a global corporation, strategies for one region might not work for another; it’s necessary to have a strategic give-and-take (if one region has to give something up, for example) so that executives can find the right strategy that enables the best way forward for all stakeholders. This can only be done in person, where a team ethos can be developed; it can’t be done over video conference. Holding these sorts of strategic meetings remotely runs the risk of people agreeing to do things that they won’t subsequently do. In a virtual, transactional context, people given transformational tasks may ignore them (or tell others to ignore them because consensus hasn’t been built and they aren’t seen to align with the team’s goals or responsibilities).

Developing and executing strategy requires intensive personal interaction, and I cannot see how virtuality can overcome the need to be together personally. I believe we’ll even see an increase in business-related air and train travel. In mature markets where companies are doing everything they can to reduce costs and improve quality, face-to-face meetings (for strategic issues) are more necessary than before. People are more emotionally tested; when they ask themselves: “I’ve done everything—what else can I do?”—the answer is found through people sharing experiences, and this can only be done in the same room. With that extra stimulus, people will be better able to face up to challenges. And if they don’t have that stimulus, desperation could set in.

People are sensual beings—they use their five senses to make sense of the world. With only vision and hearing, people can have difficulty making sense; they need touch (and to a lesser extent smell and taste) to properly decode a business situation.

Again, not every meeting needs to be face-to-face—when tasks can be clearly defined, they can be performed virtually. Many jobs have components that can be done from anywhere, and many employees appreciate flexible working hours and working locations. The type of person matters as well regarding suitability for remote working—some introverted people might prefer to work remotely, needing less interaction than most (but still needing some). People with children often prefer the flexibility of working virtually, however it again comes down to the person. For example, studies of new mothers who begin working remotely have shown that those whose jobs already involved transactional tasks did not have a problem working remotely, whereas executive females who were used to driving forward a team, having interactions and running meetings did have difficulty working remotely and were anxious to return to work.

Working remotely suits some people who have clear, transactional tasks to complete. But companies should be wary of having people only work remotely—these companies will miss out on that extra edge that comes from colleagues working together in the same place sharing expertise and experience.

Eleven million bits of information are thrown at our senses every second. The human mind is able to process forty bits of information at one time, and can focus on seven (plus or minus two) bits of information at one time. Clearly a lot passes us by—and the information that people are receiving but not processing causes many to suffer from information overload. People try to focus on the forty bits they can process, but they just can’t do it, and they may miss or ignore important things.

People can also suffer from stress. Say an efficient and effective person is promoted in an organisation, and as a result he has many more demands for information and tasks from people to respond to—he might start to fall behind schedule for his customers and clients. He starts to make mistakes, feels bad, and then imposes more stress on himself; it becomes a negative loop, and may lead to burnout. It could be the case that highly efficient people are harder on themselves and thus suffer more from information overload.

What’s the solution? Having the right filtering mechanisms for incoming information and demands is very important. Technology alone won’t do it for you; it really helps to have a good team around you. At any time there might be a thousand things competing for attention—people need to be able to ruthlessly prioritize and delegate, being diligent to structure their day in a way that works for them and stick to goals while remaining flexible to deal with urgent new tasks.

One needs to know what’s important and what’s not. Potentially relevant information shouldn’t be categorically dismissed, but if the information is interesting but not important for what you want to achieve, it shouldn’t be focused on. Other information may be boring but important for what you want to achieve. It’s important to have the right information when you need it, and be able to act upon the information decisively.

With greater utility coming from phones, and more reasons to use them for longer, I worry a bit that the BlackBerry addiction we’ve seen in business users could extend more broadly. The Digital Collaborators (who are the most connected and have the most gadgets) and Roving Nodes (who consume a lot of digital content and share it with friends) are the groups I believe to be most at risk for developing addictive behaviours. And while workplaces can offer training for proper use of technology, it might be more difficult for individuals to know when to stop.

On the other hand, it was interesting to see one group, the Ambivalent Networkers (who were mostly 20-somethings and 60 percent male), shy away from the ‘always-on’ connectivity that mobile phones provide. 31 percent of Ambivalent Networkers strongly agreed that they liked being very accessible (compared to an average of 47 percent for the other groups), and over half of Ambivalent Networkers agreed that taking a break from technology is a good idea. If many users become jaded about technology, addiction might become less of a worry.

Even without these ’special features,’ that Obama can use a BlackBerry to keep in touch with his closest advisors will certainly help him keep up to date on the latest important developments. Hopefully this enhanced awareness will help him to govern fairly and transparently.

I do think it’s important for Obama to be able to keep in touch with his most important staff while he’s on the go. The article does make an interesting distinction between the ‘haves’ and the ‘have nots’–those select few who have Obama’s address will be able to ‘have his ear’ and reach the president in an immediate (and unprecedented) way. I think this input and quick feedback will be useful to Obama and help him lead in the way that Americans expect, with greater honesty, more openness, greater tolerance and more and better consultation.

They’re going to pry it out of my hands. This is a concern, I should add, not just of Secret Service, but also lawyers.

While a heavy user, I don’t think Obama is a BlackBerry addict–he seems able to focus on things and work without his BlackBerry when necessary. I’m sure he’ll follow the rules (and perhaps switch to an approved device), but his inability to use a BlackBerry while president raises an interesting question: Will Obama be a less effective leader because he can’t use his BlackBerry?

I’m inclined to say no, his lack of a BlackBerry won’t be an impediment–he certainly has plenty of staff to keep him on task and up to date on developments. But he’ll have to adjust to being a step removed from direct response. Leaders need to be able to adapt quickly to changes in their situation–given his performance during the election campaign, I don’t think this will be a problem for Obama.

Now, I know that sometimes a Blackberry may compete with a spouse for attention, but I think that 35% of people choosing the device over the person is endemic of the BlackBerry addiction and technology addiction more generally I’ve found in my research. If someone chooses his BlackBerry over his spouse, and brings it into the bedroom (87% of respondents), and admits he ‘loves’ it (62%) (findings that echo my own research), then clearly this person needs to reexamine his priorities.