The University of Washington recently did a study examining 75 sources, 1/3 of which were obtained from social media sites and blogs, 1/3 from news sources and the last 1/3 from literature sources. Many technology users who first embraced constant connectivity are now pushing back, looking for ways to resist the constant call to be permanently connected. This pushback behavior is starting to appear in the popular press, in personal blogs, and in a small number of academic studies. “Pushback” is a growing phenomenon among frequent technology users seeking to establish boundaries, resist information overload, and establish greater personal life balance. They discovered five primary motivations related to the pushback of technology users. In their research findings, the five motivations for limiting technology use are as follows:
1) Emotional Dissatisfaction - users are limiting use because their needs are not being met. This is often accompanied by dissapointment as a result of having had high expectations regarding technology.
2) External Values - pushing back due to politcal, religious, or moral reasons. These people often desire to reconnect with family or adhere to political religious beliefs that encourage selfless behavior and face to face interaction with others.
3) Taking Back Control - Users pushing back to regain control of their time and energy. This concern is primarily about time management and the feeling that some technology use, use a specific type of technology, such as social media, is stealing productive time from the user.
3) Addiction - pushing back as a result of technology addiction. The fear is expressed in both young and old. One student said, "I am clearly addicted and the dependency is sickening."
5) Privacy - Users pushing back due to fear about their privacy being violated. A huge fear is that online users are being monitored or their online identities are in jeopardy.
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