> The only reason people don't like talking to computers in public is that ...
It does not seem right to speak of a single reason. There are probably multiple. So, IMHO it would be more productive to come up with a list and put some weights on the options if you want to dissect this matter.
IMHO one very strong factor / important reason (one that you ignore) is the social context. Ie the reaction of others in the same physical space, as you start talking out loud, seemingly unmotivated.
Humans are social animals, and so the reaction of others to the actions you do tend to be very important to a large fraction of the population. What is acceptable in one context simply isn't in another. Also, the exact tolerances tend to differ with the local culture (here "local" is used in the sense "geographically/physically local")
It's not just about not annoying others here. In this case it's also about a thing as imprecise as "perceived self image". Some people (I'd argue, most people) dislike having the perception that others perceive them to be mentally unstable or rude. Most people need some kind of social acceptance for the actions they do.
One significant trait of some mental instabilities (as well as some drug induced behavioral changes) is that those affected will spontanously start talking in public. You will probably know the Tourettes Syndrome, and the alchoholic rambling about because these cases often imply quite rude and offensive verbiage and/or loud volume, but these are not the only cases.
People in general are well adept at detecting such anomalous behaviour as it is part of our insticts trained through Evolution. Also the uncomfortable feelings that observing this type of behaviour leads to will lead many to react with a "confront or escape" (aka. "fight or flee") response (a stress signal), which is not beneficial to social interaction in general.
TL;DR: If you speak out in public without a very clear and socially valid reason (speaking to an object is not that) you are not only rude to others, but you also cause them stress... and you will have to face the social stigma of being perceived as insane.
I've been thinking about this recently. A colleague is participating in a group call and talking to someone I can't hear or see and that's just background noise to me, I can easily tune that out. Another person tends to vocalize his thought process sometimes and it steals my attention in a hard-to-explain unpleasant way every time.
> TL;DR: If you speak out in public without a very clear and socially valid reason (speaking to an object is not that) you are not only rude to others, but you also cause them stress... and you will have to face the social stigma of being perceived as insane.
Except... this problem is known to be trivially solvable. After all, the very act of putting a flat rectangle to your ear makes talking out loud in public not just perfectly acceptable, but mundane and not worth paying attention to (subject to social norms dictating where it is or isn't OK to be on the phone).
As for talking to yourself signalling insanity... I'd hope that stupid and probably developmentally retarding idea died long ago, and the "talking to yourself out loud in public" subtrope being dead since wireless earphones got ubiquitous some two decades ago.
The modern reality is, hearing someone "talking to themselves" is normal, and 99.9% of times means they're on a call.
The point is it's not, though. As a society we have generally established that it is rude to be speaking out loud on the phone in public. Especially on the bus or the train or waiting for same or in the shop or at a movie or any number of other places. I genuinely think it would be easier instead to list the places where it would be okay (in a busy street, if you step to one side). Even in these places there is some expectation that you show a little shame to be doing it, as though you didnt want to but had to because the call is important
It does not seem right to speak of a single reason. There are probably multiple. So, IMHO it would be more productive to come up with a list and put some weights on the options if you want to dissect this matter.
IMHO one very strong factor / important reason (one that you ignore) is the social context. Ie the reaction of others in the same physical space, as you start talking out loud, seemingly unmotivated.
Humans are social animals, and so the reaction of others to the actions you do tend to be very important to a large fraction of the population. What is acceptable in one context simply isn't in another. Also, the exact tolerances tend to differ with the local culture (here "local" is used in the sense "geographically/physically local")
It's not just about not annoying others here. In this case it's also about a thing as imprecise as "perceived self image". Some people (I'd argue, most people) dislike having the perception that others perceive them to be mentally unstable or rude. Most people need some kind of social acceptance for the actions they do.
One significant trait of some mental instabilities (as well as some drug induced behavioral changes) is that those affected will spontanously start talking in public. You will probably know the Tourettes Syndrome, and the alchoholic rambling about because these cases often imply quite rude and offensive verbiage and/or loud volume, but these are not the only cases.
People in general are well adept at detecting such anomalous behaviour as it is part of our insticts trained through Evolution. Also the uncomfortable feelings that observing this type of behaviour leads to will lead many to react with a "confront or escape" (aka. "fight or flee") response (a stress signal), which is not beneficial to social interaction in general.
TL;DR: If you speak out in public without a very clear and socially valid reason (speaking to an object is not that) you are not only rude to others, but you also cause them stress... and you will have to face the social stigma of being perceived as insane.
(edit: grammar/typos)