Telephonophobia and the risk of losing the art of dialogue

An increasing number of young people tend to avoid phone calls, preferring text and voice messages instead. This phenomenon, termed "telephonophobia," was the focus of a report by Il Quotidiano (RSI), which featured a contribution from Prof. Lorenzo Cantoni, Full Professor and Vice Dean of the Faculty of Communication, Culture and Society.

For many adolescents and young adults, telephone communication represents a source of pressure: the real-time nature of a conversation leaves less breathing room than written or recorded messages. This shift in communication habits raises questions about how interpersonal skills are being developed today.

As Professor Lorenzo Cantoni observes, "we tend to think that communication is simply producing a message. In reality, that is called expression; I can produce messages in front of a wall, but that isn't communication—I am merely expressing what I think. It becomes communication when another person interprets that message. In dialogue, we achieve this 'magic' of a real-time encounter between someone who has something to say and someone interested in hearing it." It is a process that risks being undermined when communication is reduced to asynchronous, detached exchanges.

The central point, Cantoni stresses, concerns the development of dialogic skills, which require practice and context: "These are all skills learned through exercise. In a family, or any context where people perhaps speak little or only leave each other voice notes, this capacity for dialogue and for adapting oneself to the interlocutor is not exercised enough."

Telephonophobia thus reflects a wider shift in modern communication. The convenience and control of digital channels risk limiting opportunities for direct exchange, potentially hindering the development of interpersonal skills.