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Portable Communities: The Social Dynamics of Online and Mobile Connectedness

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Mary Chayko has written a fascinating analysis of how the new forms of electronic communication (emails, cell phones, texting, Facebook, etc.) have opened up new forms of social interaction--forms that may seem baffling to those who have not yet adopted them.

She shows how they allow different ways to communicate. People who meet online, for example, relate in terms of the verbal contents of the messages rather than being initially swayed by the superficial physical appearances of the others.

The new forms of communication have allowed communities, in the sociological sense of the term, to develop and maintain themselves where formerly not possible. High school friends, for example, can keep in contact long after graduation and moving far apart from each other. For sure, people could write letter to do so in the past. But now with the new forms of communication, maintaining contact is easier and instantaneous. The same goes for creating networks of people interested in similar issues.

To use a concept from Emile Durkheim, the classic sociological theorist, the new forms of communication have allowed an increase in social density because people despite being distant from each other are now able to easily communicate and interact with each other. The new forms of communication indeed underpin much of the forces of globalization.

Rather than just being dazzled by--and, for many, becoming addicted to--the new gadgetry, Chayko in a highly original account has explored the social meaning of this transformation in forms of communication.

This is a book for anyone who wants to make social sense of this technological revolution in forms of communication.