A shocking amount of people suffer from "low battery anxiety"
We’ve all been in those situations in which our phone battery begins to die at the worst time possible and, as a result, we’re left in a panic like no other. That’s why we can definitely relate to electronics company LG’s new campaign for “low battery anxiety.”
The corporation defines this form of anxiety (which isn’t a medical diagnosis) as “the feeling of overwhelming fear experienced as your smartphone battery dies, causing you to live your life on your phone’s terms rather than your own.” They discovered this by conducting a survey with 2,000 smartphone users.
The symptoms include experiencing FOMO because your phone is dead, scanning every room for outlets you can plug your phone into, using airplane mode to conserve battery life, and even asking a complete stranger for a phone charger when it’s needed.
According to LG, nine out of ten of us deal with low battery anxiety when our battery life ｄrops to 20% or lower.
Though low battery anxiety sounds bad enough as it is, the effects can begin to affect other areas of your life. The researchers found out that, out of all the millennials interviewed, 42% of them were more than willing to skip their gym session so they could instead stay at home and charge their phone.
Surprisingly, low battery anxiety can also affect your love life – since 60% of participants said they’ve blamed not speaking to their partner, friends, or family on a dead or low-battery phone. For one in three people, this led to an argument with a significant other.
With all of that being said, we’re now looking at portable phone chargers for help.
Vocabulary Words:
1. Anxiety - (noun) the state of feeling nervous or worried that something bad is going to happen
2. FOMO - (acronym) "fear of missing out". The fear that if you miss a party or event you will miss out on something great
3. Millenials - (adj.) connected with the generation of people who became adults around the year 2000
4. Argument - (noun) a conversation or discussion in which two or more people disagree, often angrily
Discussion Questions:
1. Do you also suffer from "low battery anxiety"? Why do you say so?
2. On average how many hours do you use your mobile phone weekly?
3. Could you or could you not live without your smart phone? Why or why not?
4. What are the advantages and disadvantages of owning a smart phone?
5. How have smart phones changed communication?
