- Gen Z is so apprehensive about talking on the phone employers have seen a noticeable difference in their work outcomes. One U.K. college even launched a class to help the younger generation overcome “telephobia,” the fear of talking on the phone.
Gen Z’s proclivity for yapping doesn’t exactly extend to talking on the phone, especially when it comes to work. In fact, a 2024 study shows nearly a quarter of the generation is so hesitant about talking on the phone they never answer calls. A college in the U.K. just recently launched a class aimed at helping Gen Z overcome its fear.
While it may be easy to poke some fun at the youngest generation for their reluctance to talk on the phone, for some the hesitancy is actually a deeply rooted fear called “telephobia.” This form of phone anxiety can lead to increased heart rate, nausea, shaking, and trouble concentrating, according to Verywell Mind.
Gen Z, who grew up texting and instant messaging, can find phone calls jarring because they don’t have enough time to collect their thoughts before responding, Zoia Tarasova, an anthropologist with consumer insight agency Canvas8, told Fortune.
“It speaks to a broader fatigue with immediacy and urgency, where people have grown tired of the hassle culture and obsession with efficiency,” Tarasova said. “People are quietly rebelling against this immediacy by taking their time to respond to those calls.”
Gen Zers have also said phone calls scare them because they assume it’s always about an emergency. Text messages signal recipients they can take their time to think about a response, whereas a phone call puts more urgency behind the matter.
Another main cause of telephobia is the fear of being judged.
“A huge amount of our cognitive energy goes towards managing what other people think of us—in other words, for the most part, we want others to like us,” according to BBC’s Science Focus Magazine.
And it’s not just preventing the younger generation from catching up with friends or family members. Employers are noticing a real difference in how their younger employees do (or don’t) work.
How telephobia is impacting business—and what people are doing about it
Casey Halloran, CEO and cofounder of online travel agency Namu Travel, told Fortune telephobia has become a “frequent, uncomfortable topic” at his company. In the 25 years they’ve been in business, management has “never seen anything quite like the generational divide” between the older and younger travel agents in respect to making phone calls.
Halloran said management has recognized his younger travel agents register less than 50% of the calls versus older employees and hasn’t observed a distinction between male and female Gen Zers.
“As to solutions, we have been doing extensive training, incentives, call observing with our veteran reps, and even hired a business psychologist,” Halloran said. “After more than two years of this struggle, we're nearly to the point of throwing up hands and embracing SMS and WebChat versus continuing to fight an uphill battle.”
Meanwhile, Nottingham College in the U.K. is offering coaching sessions on phone confidence and etiquette to help younger generations overcome telephobia. Liz Baxter, a careers adviser at the college, also offers classroom-based sessions where students role play conversations, and are even encouraged to call restaurants and stores to practice asking what time they open.
“I think initially, it's because a lot of things that didn't used to be online are now online—you can book a GP appointment online, you can order food online—everything has gone non-verbal,” Kyle Butterworth, 28, told BBC.
Still, it’s important to recognize that not every Gen Zer has an intense level of fear in talking on the phone. In fact, Erin Lynne Mantz, vice president of employee engagement at communications agency Zeno Group told Fortune that contrary to some studies, she’s found herself on calls with Gen Zers who sound “remarkably confident on the phone, even more so than my own Gen X peers did when we were early in our careers.”
“Maybe we aren’t giving Zs enough credit,” she said.
