Hardey, M. and Atkinson, R.G. orcid.org/0000-0001-9801-9380 (2018) Disconnected: non-users of information communications technologies. Sociological Research Online, 23 (3). pp. 553-571. ISSN 1360-7804
Abstract
Growing concern about the impact of constant, mediated connection has often focused on the ways in which technologies contribute to a ubiquitous sense of presence and interaction, and the kind of invasion that this may represent to a sense of self and privacy. Discussion about information communication technologies (ICTs) is increasingly converging around the need for a deepened understanding of their effect on pace of life, methods of work, consumption and wellbeing. Counter-narratives to overwhelming hyper-connectivity have emerged as a result of these changes. Using qualitative interview data from respondents recruited from across the globe, we focus on the strategies and worldviews of those who explicitly reject the use of any ICTs. Our participants relate how, to varying degrees, they have elected to avoid forms of immediate connection, and what they identify as the deep advantages and therapeutic benefits of such ways of being. The article responds to rising social anxieties about being locked into ICT ecologies, and the difficulty of opting out of corporate information-exchange systems. These concerns, we argue, are generating increasing interest in how to manage ICTs more effectively, or to switch off altogether.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © The Author(s) 2018. This is an author produced version of a paper subsequently published in Sociological Research Online. Uploaded in accordance with the publisher's self-archiving policy. Article available under the terms of the CC-BY-NC-ND licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/). |
Keywords: | internet; social media; connection; ICT; digital; social networks; mobile; e-government |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Social Sciences (Sheffield) > Department of Urban Studies & Planning (Sheffield) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 20 Feb 2018 12:05 |
Last Modified: | 20 Apr 2021 10:29 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | SAGE Publications |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1177/1360780418764736 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:127715 |