The Virtual Community And Its Effects On Everyday Social Life

The virtual world has its strong points. This statement is true and undeniable. Indeed, social networks are an excellent way to connect people worldwide and let them share their thoughts and ideas. However, I cannot agree more to Gladwell’s thesis.

There are millions of different types of communities to be involved in throughout the area you live in. Being a part of a particular community in your region is a crucial aspect of being associated with others with similar interests as you. Whether you are part of a virtual/online, large, small, or established community; finding people with the same hobbies is important. For me, being apart of a sorority, Chi Omega, is where I feel at home. The immense amount of positivity, love, and support I receive from my sisterhood is overwhelming which makes me strive to be a better person.

To me, community is a group of people working, living and being in the same local area or place. The idea of a community as virtual would mean to include a community of people sharing social and common interests, ideas and goals (perhaps) via a social network. What it means for our society is that communities are connected virtual throughout society.

Author, Senior editor of The New Atlantis, and fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center, Christine Rosen, in her article “Virtual Friendships and the New Narcissism,” analyzes if technology can provide what it promises- “a surer sense of who we are and where we belong.” Rosen’s purpose of her article is to argue that social networking sites are doing more harm than good. Rosen uses multiple studies and quotes to present her argument.

Ken Griffey Jr. is a well-known name in the world of Major League Baseball. Before the Seattle Mariners traded Griffey Jr. to the Cincinnati Reds, he was an absolute phenomenal baseball player. Since being traded, he has been nothing but disappointment to the Reds organization. The following is a dialogue between the two members in an online community at ESPN.com.

The second major trend to be aware of is the virtual community - a social network of individuals who interact with each other without the constraints of geography, time zones, political or economic situations, weather, or demography all that matters is that they are able to come together to form a culture in which they

Today's social media keeps us connected and in touch with what's going on in the world at all times from things that happened five seconds ago and to things that happened two hundred years ago. Sites such as Facebook, Snapchat and Instagram keep us in touch with people that we cant be with often. No matter which way you look you can always connect with someone online whether they are next door or in a whole different country, sooner or later in a whole different planet. If you are online you are never alone.

Communities are all about groups of individuals who share something in common. This makes going on the internet seem like an odd way to find more communities, form new ones, or strengthen pre-existing ones. The internet however is full of communities. Communities can be based upon religion, location, ethnicity, an interest, or a personal matter. The internet itself is “a global distributed data communications network” (Kirmayer, Raikhel, & Rahimi, 2013, p. 166). This is what makes the internet so full of communities because communication is the key to putting multiple individuals with commonalities into communication, which is the basis of any community. Online communities differ from communities that exists off the web in a couple of

For the young generation, in particular, the online relationships are as influential and evocative as the face-to-face relationships. In addition, as broadcasting and broadband technologies are being accessed by more and more people, the swiftness and suppleness with which the world inhabitants are communicating and socializing (both online and offline) is increasing day by day. As far as the virtual space is

I select one of Rheingold’s recommendations from “ Virtual and Communities: Norms for members and advice for Host’s ” that is helping you easily become a community member. The recommendation is “ Do those four things- know the territory, assume goodwill, jump in wherever you can add value and reciprocate- and you’ll succeed as a virtual community member.” And, the reason from “ Creative ‘ Communities ’ : How Technology Mediates Social Worlds ” is Tom had started with some raw source material, a picture of Interpol’s Lead singer. He wrote. “ it was a nice picture I found so I decided to trace it.....so it looks like a comic or Something....” and he had published it on the forum, so Chavo offered some suggestions as it “ looked a bit odd ”. After

The second concept I want to talk about is virtual communities. Virtual communities are social groups whose interactions are mediated through information technologies, particularly the internet. Like modernism, virtual communities are very dependent on technology and the internet. Since science and technology has advanced in the past decade, people don’t need to go to different places to meet different people and can meet others over different social media platforms or even video games. Sometimes, those people met over the internet can become very close friends. For example, I play a lot of video games and I have acquainted myself virtually with many people playing those games. Some of them I even ended up meeting in real life and are still friends with today. Virtual communities have become such a social norm, that soon, people will have friends all over the internet. I think the aspect of virtual communities is good for society, because it allows people to have a greater awareness of other cultures all over the world. With more insight of how other societies and cultures operate, there is a greater chance to expand one's own social

The accessibility of the new information technology has led that social structures change, and with it the ways of relating to others. With this process of change has created what is known as "virtual communities", Rheingold defined the virtual communities as a group of social aggregates which arises from internet when a group of people create public discussions long enough to create networks of personal relationships in cyberspace. (Rheingold, 1993, The Virtual Community,). Thus individuals create new social networks where they can exchange information anytime, anywhere, depending on their needs and desires. Issues such as that new information technologies can interfere interpersonal relationships are increasingly questioned by several studies that analyze the impact positive and negative to the use and abuse leads. The aim of this essay is to discuss the pros and cons of the effects that are producing social networks.

While there are risks in online social networking, there are also many potential benefits. Many people are passionate to participate on ‘social networks’ in order to express their ideas, on social media site such as Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and MSN (Windows Live Messenger). People think that it is a good idea to have a social networking site, because you can stay in touch with your dear ones. There are many social networking sites that are used for different reasons, where people can communicate with their family and friends or worldwide “Kids can gain confidence from interacting with other people online by sharing updates, photos, videos and messages”. [1) Parent Further]. Family members can stay connected even if they are not living together. In addition, it’s good to encourage positive relationships through various ways including internet.

Society is constantly changing and will continue to change in the future. The change is predictable because people change their ideas, routines, and views frequently. One of the topics that is typically brought up when discussing the influences on how society is changing, is social networking. There are two sides to every story. One side of the effects of social networking is that it is beneficial to society by informing people on particular situations in the world and on current important events. The other side views social networking as dangerous and drama filled. While there are benefits and dangers to social networking's effects on society, I will argue that social networking has changed society more negatively than positively.

Such communities can also help people who can not go out to find friends in the real life because they are disabled. Therefore they can chat with other people via the internet. Sometimes it is also easier for people, who are afraid to look into the other's face while talking, to chat with a person that they do not know. There is something between them which makes it easier for them to communicate. It also does not matter if you have a terrible appearance because you can pretend to be whatever you want. You can also change your gender and your age to talk about topics which you do not normally