<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">

<p>As the dust of society-wide digitalisation settles, the search for meaningful technological encounters is becoming more urgent. While the Nordic countries embrace digitalisation, recent concerns regarding technology overuse have been gaining increased attention. This tendency is exemplified in practices of limiting digital use, called digital disengagement – an apparent paradox in Nordic societies where digital is the dominant paradigm. In this article, we explore the emergence of disconnection-centred devices called “dumbphones”, which cater to individuals wishing to escape hyperconnected lifestyles. Drawing on a new materialist perspective, we present a content analysis of dumbphones’ advertising material, followed by a collaborative autoethnographic study in which we replace our smartphones with dumbphones. We critically weigh the promises of the dumbphones against the actual experience of digital disengagement in Sweden. Our findings illustrate a struggle with digital technologies, even despite their absence, due to emerging workarounds and societal expectations of use.</p>
</abstract>

As the dust of society-wide digitalisation settles, the search for meaningful technological encounters is becoming more urgent. While the Nordic countries embrace digitalisation, recent concerns regarding technology overuse have been gaining increased attention. This tendency is exemplified in practices of limiting digital use, called digital disengagement – an apparent paradox in Nordic societies where digital is the dominant paradigm. In this article, we explore the emergence of disconnection-centred devices called “dumbphones”, which cater to individuals wishing to escape hyperconnected lifestyles. Drawing on a new materialist perspective, we present a content analysis of dumbphones’ advertising material, followed by a collaborative autoethnographic study in which we replace our smartphones with dumbphones. We critically weigh the promises of the dumbphones against the actual experience of digital disengagement in Sweden. Our findings illustrate a struggle with digital technologies, even despite their absence, due to emerging workarounds and societal expectations of use.

Going cold turkey!: An autoethnographic exploration of digital disengagement

Nordicom Review

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

{"article-title":"Going cold turkey!: An autoethnographic exploration of digital disengagement"}

As the dust of society-wide digitalisation settles, the search for meaningful technological encounters is becoming more urgent. While the Nordic countries...

Dataset	Source	Data collection method	Notes
Dumbphone advertisement	Light PhoneNokia 3310Punkt MP01	Manual data extraction	Screen captures of all official material regarding the dumbphones.
Digital detox	Individual experiences of smartphone disengagement	Collaborative autoethnography	Individual diaries detailing digital detox experience.

Going cold turkey!: An autoethnographic exploration of digital disengagement

Publié en ligne: 09 sept. 2021

Pages: 152 - 167

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/nor-2021-0047

Mots clés
digital disengagement, digital detox, dumbphone, autoethnography, new materialism

© 2021 Cristina Ghita et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Figure 1

Dumbphone advertisements and autoethnographic digital detox

Going cold turkey!: An autoethnographic exploration of digital disengagement

Publié en ligne: 09 sept. 2021

Pages: 152 - 167

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/nor-2021-0047

Mots clésdigital disengagement, digital detox, dumbphone, autoethnography, new materialism

© 2021 Cristina Ghita et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Figure 1

Dumbphone advertisements and autoethnographic digital detox

Mots clés
digital disengagement, digital detox, dumbphone, autoethnography, new materialism