Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
and Greek lifestyle, in general, also seemed to
matter. At the same time, the interview discourses
painted a puzzling picture of Greek distinctiveness,
with contradictory evidence about technologies
that Greek people accept enthusiastically, such
as mobile telephony, sometimes being used by
the interviewees against the argument of Greek
distinctiveness and technophobia. Hence, the
question arising from the elite actors' interviews
is whether social culture in the country is multi-
dimensional and certain aspects of it are expressed
in relation to certain types of technologies or
whether mobile telephony is a different ICT that
fits the traits and elements of Greek culture better
than any other ICT. Regardless of the answer to
this question, the elite actors' reflections bring us
back to the theoretical discussion offered in the
previous section. That is because they emphasise
technophobia, 'Greekness' and an extroverted
lifestyle in Greece as drivers of the usage of
mainly those technologies that can be employed
as an asset in people's daily social activities (e.g.
a mobile handset). On the other hand, more edu-
cational and less 'exposable' technologies and
usages that require training and a certain level of
knowledge, such as Internet technologies, have
been less popular in Greece as they do not seem
to contribute to the user's social exposure and
acceptance.
Ordinary people and their culture in Greece:
the Internet vs. mobile telephony?
In the focus groups, ordinary users and
non-users of the Internet brought up a different
perspective on the role of social culture in how
mobile telephony is perceived, evaluated and ap-
propriated. They challenged elite actors' top-down
claims about technophobia in Greek society, while
they positioned their decision to use ICTs, such as
the Internet and mobile phones, in an everyday life
context where certain socio-cultural and identity
trends are in place.
Regarding general media use, most focus
group participants said they use a wide range of
mass and new media technologies, indicating the
significant role the media plays in people's lives
today. As far as mobile telephony is concerned,
the majority said they use a mobile phone on a
frequent and even daily basis mostly to commu-
nicate with others. The interest is particularly in
Internet non-users and the reasons driving them,
on one hand, not to use the Internet and, on the
other, to choose to use mobile telephony possibly
in addition to other ICTs (e.g. computer):
Ioannis (25 yrs, male, civil engineer, single, no
children): I use my mobile phone a lot, everyday,
at work and for communicating with family and
friends…eeemmm…I use a computer everyday as
well, since I need it when I am in the office…and
radio when being in the car…TV as well when I
am at home relaxing and watching the news. I
think this is more or less…
Even those Internet non-users who have limited
familiarity with and usage of ICTs and mostly
engage with the mass media, such as television,
appear to own a mobile handset and to use it on
certain occasions:
Anna (38 yrs, female, teacher, married, two chil-
dren): I don't use my mobile that much…only when
I need to contact my children or my husband…and
only when it is needed…I prefer to read newspapers
to get informed about the news of the day…and
then I like watching TV in the evenings, the news
at 8pm, or when a good programme or series is
on. I very much like TV programmes that satirise
people and situations…it is fun and make me think
at the same time…what else?
In order to understand the factors that make
people in Greece treat these two technologies, the
Internet and mobile telephony, differently, it is
worth looking at the explanations the focus group
participants provided about society's attitudes
to ICTs in general and the Internet and mobile
telephony in particular. Regarding the Internet,
Internet non-users referred to a lack of need,
Search WWH ::




Custom Search