Guest Editors Jordan Frith, PhD, Associate Professor, University of North Texas, USA, frithjh@gmail.com
Didem Özkul, PhD, Lecturer, UCL Knowledge Lab, Department of Culture, Communications and Media, University College London, UK. d.ozkul@ucl.ac.uk
Overview
Smartphones have dominated the research in the field of Mobile Communication Studies (MCS), and for good reason. Smartphones have become possibly the dominant form of communication media, and have been widely adopted in many parts of the world. However, this special section of Mobile Media & Communication seeks to further broaden the field’s research to examine other types of mobile communication, whether historical, contemporary, or futuristic. Consequently, we are calling for articles examining the theme of this special section: Mobile Media beyond Mobile Phones. The goal of this special section is to expand the focus of the field through innovative research on nonsmartphone forms of mobile technologies.
Obviously, some research on non-mobile phone forms of mobile technologies exist. For example, researchers have studied the spatial and social impacts of mobile auditory media such as the Walkman and the iPod (Bull, 2001, 2007). Researchers have also examined how infrastructures of mobile communication shape practices of mobility, with studies examining how cell phone towers are embedded in the environment (Horst, 2013). Other research has looked at historical forms of mobile media, including the codex book and the kaleidoscope (Farman, 2015b). In addition, some researchers have examined how infrastructural technologies like RFID and Bluetooth Beacons have shaped mobile communication by bringing an increasing number of nonhuman actors into the equation (Frith, 2015; Rosol, 2010). However, despite the research that does exist, the field of MCS has the potential to incorporate far more actors—both human and nonhuman—into the broader scope of MCS.
The special section will ideally publish a fairly eclectic collection of articles united by the main theme: mobile communication involves more than mobile phones. Consequently, the submitted articles can come from various theoretical and methodological perspectives. In addition, the special section will accept submissions that focus on smartphone-adjacent topics as long as the focus is not specifically on people’s interactions with smartphones as mobile interfaces. For example, the infrastructure that enables mobile communication (cell towers, GPS, etc.), newer forms of smartphone infrastructure (Beacons, NFC), or the standards that shape smartphone development are all viable topics for this section. Possible topics, including but not limited to
- The Internet of Things broadly defined
- Historical forms of mobile communication, including but not limited to
- Books as mobile media
- Ancient forms of mobile media
- Mobile auditory media o Barcodes
- Earlier mobile gaming technologies (Gameboy, etc.)
- Mobile phone infrastructure (GPS, cell tower, etc.)
- Wearable technologies such as the Apple Watch, Fitbit, etc.
- Broader mobile communication infrastructure, including but not limited t
- RFID
- Near-Field Communication
- BLE Beacons
- QR Codes
- Robotics as mobile communication
- “Generations” of mobile networks—shift to 5G
- Mobile phone standards as vibrant actors
- The role of mobile communication in artificial intelligence
For guidelines on preparation of manuscripts and criteria for acceptance, please follow Mobile Media & Communication Submission Guidelines (https://uk.sagepub.com/engb/eur/journal/mobile-mediacommunication#submission-guidelines).
Please submit an abstract of 700-800 words that clearly states the main argument and evidence of the paper and the primary literatures it is building upon. The abstract should also clearly articulate the submission’s contribution to mobile methods. For empirical studies still in progress, please outline the current state and the timeline. Also include the names, titles, and contact information for 2-3 suggested reviewers. Abstracts are due 15 March, 2018 to frithjh@gmail.com (with “Beyond Mobile Phones Special Issue” in the subject line), and should be accompanied by an abbreviated biography (approx. 200-300 words).
Positively reviewed abstracts (notification by 15 April, 2018) will be invited to submit full articles by 1 Oct, 2018, through http://mmc.sagepub.com. These full articles will be peer-reviewed by two to three reviewers and considered for acceptance. The special section will be published in Volume 7, Issue 3 of Mobile Media & Communication. Please note that manuscripts must conform to the guidelines for Mobile Media & Communication. Final papers should be no longer than 7,000 words, including abstract, references, figures and tables. In case of further questions, please contact the guest editors.
Timeline
CfP published: 8 Jan 2018
Extended abstracts due: 15 March, 2018
Notification: 15 April, 2018
Full submission: 1 Oct, 2018
Final version: 15 March 2019
