Do you have telephobia? This is the fear of talking on the telephone/ handphone/ cellphone. We are so accustomed to smartphone messages, social media comments, emojis, gifs and WhatsApp audio messages, that we feel disconnected when we are contacted by telephone. Disuse of the phone has made us suspicious of the other person on the line. What do they want that cannot be achieved by messaging? It maybe something weird, inconvenient, or not to our benefit.
Then again, there are people on the other end of this spectrum, who don’t hesitate to call me on the phone, even for mundane matters. After raking my pea sized brain for possible reasons, I conclude that:
- The speaker is confident of their telephone skills.
- The speaker maybe a narcissist who is not only confident but desiring to show off
- The speaker thinks its good presentation and manners to talk personally to convey a message.
- The speaker has urgency to complete a task like a sale and has to seal the deal.
Just like we have body image issues in body dysmorphic disorder, we have the terminology called “voice confrontation“, to describe the condition of a person disliking the sound of their own voice. It is much more comfortable to hide behind a computer screen and smartphone screen.
Some people have anxiety talking to strangers, distant acquaintances, or even listening to their own voice.
An expert explains voice confrontation in the video.
Anecdote to prove my point:
One day, I was trying to find out from a bathroom accessories store, if they could custom make a mirror according to my measurements. I had been communicating with the salesman via WhatsApp. I texted my desired measurements. To my surprise, he changed track and responded by recording and sending a voice message. It was a briefest of brief communication. Something to the tune of “That one, can be done.” I have no idea why he chose to send an audio message instead of the usual text. Maybe he thought a personal voice message was more persuasive to elicit an order.
What happened next? I guess half of all readers would guess I placed the order. After all, my requirement will be met. When I tried to double confirm with other members of the household, they held back and hesitated on making a commitment because that mirror would cost about a thousand.
So the audio message backfired. Maybe because my family and I are exceptional weirdos who shy away when the personal touch is applied. We are conditioned to suspect the personal contact. The local media, government, law enforcement and various agencies have cautioned us for about a decade, on the fallacies of falling prey to scams that originate with an inconspicuous telephone call. Victims have lost their life savings to scammers, gotten into debt and deep trouble. No, we feel we must reject the person to person phone call. We are too used to the personal yet impersonal social media, that we distrust the voice medium.
After all, we have to pay for phone calls’ air time. Why should we?