- Texting sends the message (no pun intended) that something or someone else is more important. It is not abnormal for someone to be having a serious conversation with someone, then all of the sudden the listener/speaker whips out his/her phone to read and respond to the latest text. No matter if your mother-in-law is moving in with you or you are deemed ineligible for varsity soccer or your pet hamster died. I just got an utterly meaningless text but I still prioritize it over you.
- Texting inhibits and arguably prevents the natural and psychologically healthy human tendency to think. The mind is an incredible gift. God was wise to give us the ability to think without speaking. How awkward would life be if all our thoughts were available for the world to read or hear? Thinking is how we deal with life's complexities, pleasures, pains, and mysteries; how we reflect God's nature as a Reasoner; how we use logic and argumentation to discover truth. To forgo this amazing ability is to neglect the gift of reason and thought that sets us apart from mere animals.
- Texting as a means of communication is socially ambiguous. A recent "relationship status" that I've heard people cite is, "We're talking." In other words, they are texting regularly. But what does this entail? Is constant textual communication as intimate as face-to-face conversation? Texting someone can give that person the illusion that the relationship is exclusive; in reality, the texter may be mass-messaging the texts he sends to seven different people.
- Texting eliminates the majority of communication signals utilized in everyday (normal) conversation. Social psychologists claim that words constitute less than 10% of communication; the rest involves tone, context, body language, facial expressions, etc. Text messages are often misinterpreted, for better or for worse, as a result. In general, sarcasm doesn't travel over text. Neither does excitement or anger. Not only is the message the texter intended different from its apparent form; its misinterpretation is potentially detrimental to a relationship.
In conclusion, texting hurts rather than helps relationships and communication in general. Its social repercussions heavily outweigh its practical purposes.
