Who is Phubber, how to become Phubber?

IN THE PERIOD FROM the '90s TO THE 2000, my "skinny" jeans gave way to cargo pants in my closet, my music CDs were put in boxes, and my first Apple iPod, with a memory of a thousand songs, became the most exciting toy of my life.

The 90s were a period in which there was more peace and a higher level of prosperity than the previous decades. With the disintegration of the Soviet Union, the decades-long Cold War ended, the Berlin Wall came down, and artistic creativity peaked thanks to popular culture. The 90s were also a time of change and experimentation in the music industry, leading to the development of new genres and subgenres. I have always felt very lucky to have grown up in that period and to have breathed the atmosphere of that period.

With the coronavirus entering our lives, we found ourselves back in the 90s, when we felt the most at peace. We watched Friends and looked for peace in the great songs of that period. Our childhood photos taken with 35mm film appeared in carefully made albums, proving how timeless the 90s were. It enriched our WhatsApp groups.

Of course, the benefits of the digital development we have experienced in the last 25 years and how much easier it has made our lives is an undeniable fact. However, technology has also made us forget how to stay in the moment, think, and be curious individuals. From 7 to 70, our attention span has narrowed. We couldn't find our way home without navigation. Ignoring the people we were in a cafe, on a holiday, or in any other environment caused the quality of the time we spent with them to decrease, and eventually, we were introduced to a new terminology called "phubbing".

The concept of phubbing, which has English origins, was formed by the combination of the noun "phone" and the verb "snubbing" (to disregard, ignore). Its meaning is briefly expressed as the negative effects of developing technology on people's social and cultural life. This term means that you stare at your smartphone screen for much longer than normal and do not communicate with the people around you.

The person who does phubbing is called a "phubber". I would like to share the interesting story of Brandon Vezmar from Austin, a victim of phubbing in America. When his girlfriend, with whom he went to the cinema, did not put her phone down during the movie, despite Vezmar's warnings, Vezmar found the solution by asking to get the ticket money back from his girlfriend at the end of the night. When his girlfriend rejected his request, Vezmar took the matter to the next level by taking legal action. According to a study by Nottingham Trent University, smartphone users login to their phones an average of 85 times a day. According to strategic marketing company McCann, 87 percent of the millennial generation prefer SMS messaging to face-to-face meetings, and they phubbing people they eat with on average 36 times during a meal.

The scientific journal Computers in Human Behaviour states that people who are victims of phubbing experience feelings such as anger, anxiety, and jealousy. I'm on the side that thinks phubbers betray not only their environment but also themselves. If you have acquired this habit over time and started to become an "asocial" individual in your social circle, or if you cannot fully experience a trip you have taken, alarm bells are ringing for you too.

Eurythmics described what I wanted to say beautifully with the song "Sweet Dreams", which we still remember in the 90s (and still): "I travel the world and the seven seas. Sweet dreams are made of this. Who am I to disagree?"

So I said, "Is it the one who travels a lot, or the one who reads a lot?" I end my article by putting an end to the discussion from the perspective of the 90s. He who travels a lot knows; To those who know how to travel and live in the moment.