ON / OFF

Are you constantly online? Or are you offline sometimes? Are you offline if you are not interacting with your connected devices? Or if no data about you is being collected? Do you check Instagram and Twitter during dinner? Do you turn off your smartphone at night? Do you check work emails on vacation? Do you feel you have to disconnect regularly – to relax, to concentrate, or to protect your privacy? Or do you feel more relaxed when constantly connected because your loved ones, a work emergency, or the news are always at your fingertips? Why are some people – even within networked societies – still completely offline given the tremendous opportunities of the Internet? And what does it even mean to be online or offline in the age of hyper-connectivity?

In ON/OFF, Sarah Genner assesses the risks and rewards of the anytime-anywhere Internet, focusing on digital divides, social relationships, physical and mental health, and data privacy. She discusses implications for a variety of decision-makers in the world of work, in education, in families, and in politics. The author deconstructs the online/offline dichotomy and suggests the ON/OFF scale as a new theoretical framework for researchers and practitioners.