Technology and our Social Well-Being

I think our generation overlooks how technologically historic and ground-breaking a time we live in. We are the first generation to grow up with computers readily accessible for any purposes; we witnessed the transformation of the internet from dial-up to now being able to watch YouTube videos on a phone; we’ve had video games that went beyond Duck Hunt for as long as we remember, and cell phones have become such a common item, that I don’t even foresee myself having a house phone when I am living on my own. This amazes me considering I still know all my close friends phone numbers, and remember having to call and talk to their mom anytime I wanted to get in touch with anyone. While technology will continue to expand exponentially, and our children will certainly have items that we can’t even fathom, we will always have a place in history as the first to grow up completely immersed in previously unheard of technology.

            What is even more interesting to me is how these technological advancements have completely altered our existence as social beings. The first noticeable change was with AOL Instant Messenger. This was the first widely used means of online communication for our generation (as far as I know), and I can remember thinking how awesome it was to be able to “talk” to people on the computer. Before we had even left elementary school we were already hooked - the corny abbreviations, screen names, etc. I don’t think I knew a single person who didn’t have AOL IM from at least 6^th grade on.

            The second major change, to me, was when cell phones became a common item for kids. While it is pretty amazing how seemingly overnight everyone had a cell phone, the more critical development was the creation of text messaging. Once text messaging capabilities became common for everyone, we were suddenly able to communicate instantly with people from anywhere without ever having to say a word. It was one thing to sit at a computer and basically send instant emails back and forth, but to be able to contact someone from anywhere (unrealistically assuming you could get service anywhere), was something entirely different.

            Obviously the relationship between social relationships and technology has only multiplied since then with programs like Skype and Facebook, but I am not concerned with how good the technology is becoming, but more with how it has changed the nature of our social existence. Instant messenger, cell phones, Facebook – the specific technology is not as important as the social development that has followed. We have grown up in an environment where we probably communicate with people via a screen more than we do face to face. Sure, you say hello to people when you run into them throughout the day and you might talk to a few people on the phone, but how many more people do you “talk” to via written words– texting, Skype, email – each day. Entire conversations are had between people and neither person never actually utters a spoken word. Yet, you can’t pull emotion from a text and you can’t read sarcasm off a computer screen, it’s just words put out there to be interpreted however the person receiving it chooses. To me, while our social existence has grown exponentially, I also see it being degraded. There is so much more that goes into a conversation aside from the actual words that are spoken, yet all this is stripped away when people aren’t face to face, or even talking on the phone, but just typing words to each other.

           Furthermore, the immediacy of these communication mediums has further collapsed what I would consider a, for lack of a better word, traditional social existence. I might not see one of my oldest friends for six months, but know exactly what he has been doing just by looking at Facebook and maybe sending the occasional text. I wouldn’t even say this is a bad thing, but consider the opposite end of the spectrum. Imagine bumping into someone you haven’t spoken to in years, yet they could already know everything that is going on in your life. As long as you were friends with them online, they could occasionally glimpse a status update, wall post, or picture and keep tabs on you. This isn’t even an unrealistic suggestion either. (Anyone who says they don’t “creep” on Facebook is lying, they do.) Programs like Twitter only further this trend. Twitter is little more than a stream of consciousness and list of your daily activities put out there for all to see. Someday, if we’re not already there, every time you go to tell someone what’s new in your life, they’ll simply cut you off and inform you they already know, “I saw it on Facebook.” What are we going to talk about when everyone already knows everything about everyone?

           This is not meant to be a bashing of the aforementioned technologies; I use and love them as much as anyone. I merely find the transformation in how we navigate our social network intriguing. It has created both positive and negative trends. For example, in our society I think relationships have become less meaningful and the ability to communicate clearly and thoughtfully has all but been replaced by lol’s and abbreviations for everything, but we are able to reach out to an infinitely greater number of people than we could even just a decade ago. I remember my dad going on multiple week business trips to China as a kid, and it was weird to just not see him for half a month. In this day and age, a person can travel the world without ever losing touch with loved ones.

            Technology is a beautiful thing, and continues to find ways to make our lives more comfortable, enjoyable, and manageable. I just don’t want to see people become so enthralled by it that they forget to go outside and live once in a while. 

- Zan Smith