Effects of Technology on Social Relationships Essay

Whether or not society recognizes it, there is a gravitational pull amongst all, towards technology. Within that pull, lies the loss of an ability to focus and to connect with one another. Close friendships fade, romantic relationships dissolve, and family dynamics dim. At the root of the heartaches, lies technology—whether it be cellphones, laptops, television, or tablets. In Daniel Goleman’s book, Focus, he examines the the correlation and causation of technology and the effects it has on the human brain. Goleman spends plenty of time discussing the lack of human connection being resulted in the era of technology and how it effects individuals. As one of those individuals, Goleman’s writing reflected my own life with technology.

Not only is the way we view the world being altered, but also the way in which we receive information. Because the internet makes finding the answer to a question so easy, humans are beginning to want everything in an instant. I think the Internet has changed our expectations of comprehending text by reading and analyzing the text, to get it quickly and with giving little to no effort, or as some call it, “brain sweat”. Although it may seem that there is nothing wrong with taking a more efficient way, computers can only do so much. We must be able to recognize social ques and communicate with others. I agree with Carr’s statement that “if we lose those quiet spaces, or fill them up with “content,” we will sacrifice something important not only to ourselves,

Surely, we can’t deny how technology helps us contact each other, but there is one idea that they overlooks, which is the addiction that people have on the cell phone. Whenever people congregate, the action they do is stare on the phones. Audrey, sixteen, a Roosevelt junior, describes how her relationship with her mother breaks up as her mother spent all her time on the phone every time they were together. “It could have been four days since I last spoke to her, then I sit in the car and wait silently until she’s done,” said Audrey (377). In other words, Audrey is trying to express her feeling that how the cell phone has estranged her and her mother. From these, we can tell that how technology has been a “drug” that keeps us from interacting with each

Carr’s article begins by explaining how the Internet is something that we can benefit from, however, he suggests that we rely too much on technology to make anything we do uncomplicated and more productive. Carr believes that the Internet is changing and controlling our brains. He agrees that our brains worked like clockwork in the past and since the invention of the computer, they seem to work more like computers. He claims that the Internet is also to blame for our decreasing attention spans. His friends and acquaintances agree that they have problems focusing when they read long pieces of information. Bruce Friedman, a blogger, supports Carr’s theory by stating that he is unable to read and comprehend long books or articles. He fully believes

A human’s use of communication is a major key to our existence here on earth. If we weren’t capable of communicating our survival would probably be hopeless. As Human beings, we have an extremely detailed system of verbal and non-verbal communication that has developed over time and familiarity. With the advent of technology at the end of the 20th century our communications has moved into the computer realm, in the form of computer-mediated communication (CMC) (Bevan & Sole, 2014). CMC is now a completely normal and very common way to communicate in today’s era. Even though CMC seems to be the preferred way to communicate in this timeframe, it is also seen as less personable and the ending of what we knew as real conversations.

Did you know that teens spend 44 hours a week on a smartphone? I am here to tell you about that technology is ruining friendships. You may not believe me but after this essay I will have a convincing story. I will tell you how much time people spend on the internet how it ruins friendships, but I will tell some pros about it though.

In my most recent blog post I spoke about how technological advancements as well as how dating services has made it more difficult for the youth and adults of society to sustain healthy relationships. Twice as many young adults ages 25-30 first viewed pornography before puberty than did the next generation. Which is a very staggering amount of people loosing their virginities to virtual reality. Only one in 20 young adults and one in 10 teens say their friends think viewing pornography is a bad thing. Our generation has gotten very comfortable with technology that not only do they lose their virginities to technology now teens have became more comfortable establishing social groups of friends online.

We interact with our cell phone everyday and we have developed an intimate relationship with our technology. Deborah Lupton in the digitalized self/body argues that technology has become “personalized prosthetics of the self” (Lupton, pg.166) in which I have become emotionally attached to my phone and it has become part of me. My phone is always close to my body either in my pocket or in my hand. When I put my phone in the drawer for the whole day and went out without it, I was feeling depressed and insecure. It had a mental impact on my body as it left my body even for a short period of time. Lupton describes that, “the boundaries between self and other, human and machine, body and technology have become ever more blurred” (Lupton, pg.167). We can no longer distinguish between human and technology because it has immersed into one. Technology is literally attached to our bodies throughout our daily routine and everything we do requires

New technology can ruin relationships completely if people lack communication skills. Why would someone want to get to know someone without being face to face? What would they talk about when they are together? The relationship would become dull and boring; there is no way to avoid that. Communication is key; being able to use body language and tones in your voice so people won’t get the wrong idea is impossible over the Internet. Everyone has been in a situation when texting someone, and he or she says something that comes off offensive, and you are completely put off, and feel like you are put in an awkward situation. That rarely happens when you’re able to read people face to face .

Many individuals would argue that technology and modern conveniences make one’s life become simpler and more efficient. While technology may potentially have some benefits, technology does impact individuals on a social and a spiritual level. Technology shapes social structures, and social structures shape individuals, resulting in isolation and loneliness. Technology also impacts people on a spiritual level, causing people to develop an individualistic mindset. Therefore, modern life and conveniences actually hurt an individual’s well-being rather than restoring.

One of the major problems I see with technology becoming so integrated in our life’s is that everyday things such as paying your bills or just checking the weather or even just talking to your friends all come from grabbing your phone out of your pocket. People are losing the ability to talk face to face and have any face to face interactions.

Growing up in the midst of the rise of cell phone usage and smart phone development has its pros and cons. In my home, my mother is technologically impaired, yet she is on the phone the most out of every household member, while my father, who is technologically advanced, rarely answers incoming text messages or calls. According to a study conducted by Pew Research in 2017, 77% of Americans own a smartphone, and 95% own a cellphone of some sort, however, not all cellphone users are alike. Through my examination over the course of my life, there are three different levels of cellphone users based on their dependency: there are the cell phone addicts, the moderately-dependent on cellphone users, and the non-dependent users. These are the users who frequently forget to even turn their phones on in the morning.

Have you ever been in a silent room with no conversations and all you can hear are vibrating phones? For example, at Thanksgiving or Christmas, do you have a person in the family that always happens to be on their phone and barely talks to the rest of the family? In today’s society, people tend to text each other rather than have face-to-face conversation. However, thirty years ago if you were compelled to give a message or talk to someone, you would call or go visit them. Everyone needs to realize their worth in the world and technology isn’t helping them. So many of us are missing out on numerous different opportunities due to the lack of personal conversations. Significantly, there is more to life than our cell phones. Today, a simple text seems to do the trick, however, has this gratified our communication skills and how would we react without being able to use our cell phones? It is obvious that people need to restrict their phone dependency by holding themselves accountable for the excessive usage.

People tend to want to take the easiest, fastest way to communicate, instead of taking a longer more thought-felt approach. Many articles have been written about this very subject. In Ellen Goodman’s article “In Praise of a Snail’s Pace” she says the way we communicate is greatly influenced by the computer and

When was the last time you left home without your cellphone? Chances are you do not remember. Our lives often revolve around our devices, one could even say technology is taking over the world and our lives. Contrary to popular belief, that technology is beneficial, this new digital world is extremely negative for us. Our devices, cell phones especially, can create extremely anti-social behaviour such as ignoring others to use one’s phone. Furthermore, they can have poor effects on someone’s health that in extreme cases may lead to death. Electronics may even become an addiction, if not properly controlled, where people are overly relying on their devices.