TY - JOUR
T1 - Mortality Salience and Mobile Voice Calling
T2 - A Case of a Massive Natural Disaster
AU - Suzuki, Takahisa
AU - Kobayashi, Tetsuro
AU - Boase, Jeffrey
AU - Tanaka, Yuko
AU - Wakimoto, Ryutaro
AU - Suzuki, Tsutomu
PY - 2022/6
Y1 - 2022/6
N2 - Observational studies have found that the frequency of mobile communication with close ties increases in times of emergency. However, the mechanisms underlying such increases are not well understood. Drawing upon terror management theory, this study predicted that increased mortality salience due to disaster promotes mobile voice calling to close ties. By analyzing digitally traced behavioral data, Study 1 found that mobile voice calls to close ties increased after the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011, especially in areas where there were severe tremors. Study 2 employed a field experiment and demonstrated that psychologically priming respondents to recall the earthquake led to an increase in the number of outgoing mobile voice calls to close ties, but not to non-close ties. The theoretical implications for mobile communication in time of disaster are discussed.
AB - Observational studies have found that the frequency of mobile communication with close ties increases in times of emergency. However, the mechanisms underlying such increases are not well understood. Drawing upon terror management theory, this study predicted that increased mortality salience due to disaster promotes mobile voice calling to close ties. By analyzing digitally traced behavioral data, Study 1 found that mobile voice calls to close ties increased after the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011, especially in areas where there were severe tremors. Study 2 employed a field experiment and demonstrated that psychologically priming respondents to recall the earthquake led to an increase in the number of outgoing mobile voice calls to close ties, but not to non-close ties. The theoretical implications for mobile communication in time of disaster are discussed.
KW - mobile voice call
KW - terror management theory
KW - mortality salience
KW - Great East Japan Earthquake
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85083063919&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - https://www.scopus.com/record/pubmetrics.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85083063919&origin=recordpage
U2 - 10.1177/0093650220911809
DO - 10.1177/0093650220911809
M3 - RGC 21 - Publication in refereed journal
SN - 0093-6502
VL - 49
SP - 479
EP - 499
JO - Communication Research
JF - Communication Research
IS - 4
ER -
