Mobile Use for Work High - but Only Among Men

British men are more likely to use their mobile phone for work related tasks while women are more likely to use it to stay in touch with their family, concludes an independent survey produced by online mobile phone retailer mPhone.

Nearly 28% of men see their mobile phones as 'primarily a tool for work' compared to only 7.7% of women who feel the same. Almost 50% of women view a mobile as a way of staying in touch with family members, while only 35% of men share their opinion. Meanwhile, both genders seem to perceive the social functions of a phone similarly, with 24.1% of men and 23.6% of women viewing a phone as a way of organising their social lives. Only 2.4% of men see a phone as a fashion item while a fraction of one per cent of women feel the same.

"Despite the survey suggesting that people don't see their phones as fashion items there is a powerful, fashion industry led and heavily financially supported, move in this direction," explained Ali Mahmoud, managing director of mPhone. "The trade is beginning to make inroads towards changing this view with last year's release of the Motorola D&G (Dolce & Gabbana) phone and more recently with Prada's entry into the mobile phone market, in partnership with LG. This is an inexorable movement and my prediction is that a survey similar to this in two years time would show radically increased interest in the mobile as a fashion item."

"Traditionally men in the UK have been more focused on work than women," continued Mahmoud. "Of course, this is a sweeping generalisation but does give us a starting point from which to work when analysing the results of our survey. The key is that the respondents described the 'primary' function they see their phones fulfilling, not the only function. As a result, this survey doesn't show that women don't use phones for work, or that men use phones only for business. More interestingly, it indicates the attitude each gender has towards a tool that can be used in many, many ways. One thing is certain - using a mobile for work isn't restricted to London or other cities, it seems common amongst men across the UK.""

Posted to the site on 27th June 2007