Mobile phones without guarantees: The promises of technology and the contingencies of culture

Abstract

The mobile phone’s global diffusion has generated hope in its ability to enable individuals in developing countries to increase their income and life opportunities. However, numerous socio-cultural factors contribute to the outcomes of technology in diverse contexts. This article uses Alcoff’s (2006) theory of positionality and the notion of socio-techno practices to examine mobile phones and the labor relations of young rural-to-urban migrant women working in the low-level service sector in Beijing. This study argues that the women’s gender, age, class, and rural origin produce particular constraints on their ability to generate higher income and find better jobs. It also reveals that some employers use mobile phones for surveillance of employees, which was not likely before since most migrant women do not have landlines. This article shows that as much as the mobile phone is a liberatory and equalizing technology, it can also reinforce rather than upset patriarchal power relationships.