Mobile Phone Harassment: An Exploration of Students’ Perceptions of Intrusive Texting Behavior

Abstract

Limited research has explored the link between mobi le phone use and harassment behaviors. This paper details the findin gs from a preliminary study that examined perceptions of unwanted communication, wit h one focus group (7 participants) and two vignettes presented to 145 students. The vi gnette participants were asked to respond to hypothetical questions about continued a nd unwanted contact being maintained as if they were both a sender and recipi ent of the contact and if they had actually been harassed. Response options allowed fo r intended behavior to be measured against generally agreed thresholds of duration and frequency used to identify harassment. Findings indicated that harassment by t ext is more prevalent than other forms of off-line stalking and, despite recipients reporting being distressed, there was still a higher level of acceptance of this form of harassment than other forms. Furthermore, responses to text harassment were asso ciated with a high frequency of behaviors perceived as not actively discouraging fu rther texts, therefore having the effect of prolonging unwanted contact. These results are d iscussed in relation to intervention strategies and future research.