Phone phobia: For some people, answering a call is a ‘fate worse than death’

Talking on the phone can leave Gen Z and Millennials anxious, giving a new interpretation to the Carly Rae Jepsen song lyrics, ‘...

Here’s my number, so call me, MAYBE’. Imagine it’s Monday, and your diary lies open before you. The week stretches ahead, and there is a lot to do.

Work meetings, sports practice, a birthday dinner, a hair appointment, and...

Hold on. Someone is calling you. It’s an unknown number.

Your body freezes, and your heart rate increases. You hesitate, with your thumb hovering over your cellphone’s green accept icon. Nope, you think.

You mute the call and let it ring. This anxiety-ridden refusal, dubbed “telephonophobia”, might seem odd if you’re in your early early-40s and up. However, it’s common for Gen Z and Millennials, says Auckland University of Technology (AUT) postgraduate supervisor and digital wellbeing specialist Dr Lena Waizenegger, 35.

Telecommunications surveys have shown that picking up the phone can lead to feelings of anxiety in up to 50 per cent of Gen Z and Millennials because of the uncertainty of what the call might be about. Texting is deemed less invasive. Waizenegger says these generations also associate phone calls with emergencies and bad news — another reason to get sweaty when they receive one.

In addition, they feel that voice-to-voice phone conversations are time-consuming. “Busyness is almost like a disease,” Waizenegger says. “In this lifestyle of busyness, it fits in quite well that we just fli.