Social Conditions of the Innovative Use of Smartphone: A Qualitative Investigation among Young Users in Dhaka

Abstract

Concerns about the adverse impacts of using smartphones are common in the literature. However, there is insufficient research on whether users make innovative use of the device. If they do, what is the nature of the creative use of smartphone? What are the social conditions that facilitate the innovative use of the smart device? This study seeks to answer these questions by investigating the use of smartphone among teenagers in Dhaka. The respondents of this research are purposively selected from the secondary schools located in five different areas of Dhaka city. Snowballing technique was used to identify the forty-four avid users. Findings of the study show that respondents employ innovative strategies of escaping supervision: Installing software, e.g., AppsLock, Gallery Lock, and CM Security; using password; and blocking parents and relatives on social media—“totally black-listed.” They also read books using Gutenberg Apps and go online to learn how to wear hijab “smartly.” Advance users heavily use smartphone to learn software programming, prepare science projects, and do photography for presenting at art exhibitions. Most importantly, the study identified three facilitating conditions of the creative use of smartphone: Friends, events, and parents. These social conditions constitute an ecosystem that facilitates the innovative dispositions of the young users of smartphones.