Why I Turned Off Vibrate on my Phone
When I bought the recently released iPhone 5 in 2013, I used this new beginning as an opportunity to make a slight change. I disabled my phone’s vibration mechanism. At the time, I made this change for mostly practical purposes: I wanted to save battery and was tired of ghost vibrations. Since then, I’ve observed a change in my relationship with my phone. This simple change has halted the process by which a phone ingrains responses through repetitive sensory input.
When you touch a hot stove grate, your hand moves backward. When you smell a bad stench, you plug your nose or move away from the smell. When you hear a fire alarm, you leave the building. Our bodies respond to sensory input, and just as certain reactions to these inputs become habitual and require little to no conscious thought, so too does our response to our phones’ vibration and sounds. When we feel that vibration in our pocket, our natural inclination is to pull out our phone. When we hear a short ringtone, we check to see who is texting or emailing us. Some of these responses described above are hardwired, a product of millions of years of evolution, as is the case with the hot stove. Others are taught to us because they serve important social functions, such as the response to a fire alarm or a siren. In this latter categories of responses, we as individuals and as a society decide which of these input-to-action models we wish to establish. This decision is usually a function of the utility of this habit, the end goal(s) it serves.
Though I didn’t know it at the time, nor did I do it based off of this function, choosing to disable my phone’s vibration was a decision of the latter category. I haven’t allowed my phone to create the habit of responding to the sensory input that it’s capable of producing. Rather, I check it on a schedule controlled by other mechanisms. While there is certainly a lot to be said about the other mechanisms that likely control the schedule of checking my phone (social pressure to be in the loop, anxiety about what could have been sent to me since the last time I checked, etc.), I am happy knowing that I have not become tethered to my phone through its vibrations and audible communication.
I’m sharing this insight with you because it may not be entirely obvious that this choice is available to you. There are many ways in which you can personalize your experience and relationship beyond the apps you download, the duration of your “Do Not Disturb” mode, and your brightness level in low lighting. Your phone is built for you. It’s programmable in many senses. This is just one way in which you can personalize your relationship with your phone, and actively decide how your phone will be integrated into your life. I hope reading this will help you think about the implications behind the decisions you make with your phone and the relationships you want to foster with these ubiquitous devices.
