Impact of Technology on Identity and Personal Relationships Development

Impact of Technology on Identity and Personal Relationships Development
Name:
Course:
Instructor:
Date:
Introduction
Since the beginning of history, technology has been there. It has only been advancing. Ever since the Stone Age, when humans made spears and knives from stone to the invention of computers and printing press, technology has been there. The rate of advancement, however, has been exceptionally rapid in the 20th and the 21st century. The communication technology has been at the forefront, and it has taken the better part of human life. Technology has had been good on the growth of the economy. However, in the middle school students, technology has showcased to have a greater negative impact on identity and personal relations than the positive impact.
The Impact of Technology on Identity Development
Self-identity, more or less self-portray has been an important factor of someone’s individuality ever since the beginning of history. In the olden days, popular people could use paint portraits for the purposes of documenting their existence. With the advancement in technology, people no longer need those paints; people can create picture using pixels. Certain websites as Facebook and Myspace have got a way of manipulating photographs and providing background music. There are also lists of friends and our musings for instance hobbies. One major thing deduced from Facebook is that the self-portray is fake; it has been manipulated. This is what technology does to the self-identity of the youths.
Facebook and other social sites have provided a platform through which people can update their statuses, change their profile pictures add and get rid of other friends among others. Just like in the olden days when a paint portrait would be manipulated, so are the photographs and profile pictures on Facbook and Myspace. Originally, Facebook targeted high school and college students. It is only recently when it was opened to everyone. In powerful people in the olden days would alter the paints to seek popularity. Social sites do the same. The young generation spent time on the social sites seeking attention of the public; to gain popularity. This is because Facebook gives a platform through which friends can respond to the posts (Watkins, 2009). With the many ‘likes’ and short messages from friends; the person who posted gains popularity.
Seeking popularity has gotten into the ways of the youth such that they have forgotten who they really are and what they want for themselves. Technology has made it such that instead of the young generation trying to find themselves and establish their standards; they are busy seeking the perception of others about them. The youths have taken to trying to please the outward world rather than themselves thus forgetting who they really are.
Forgetting oneself means that one has got no firm stand or standards. They get swayed away by what the world perceive ‘fashionable’ and ‘trendy’. The youths have forgotten what they stand for regarding their values and beliefs and have taken to what the world stands for. The youths thus tend to copy other cultures they consider ‘fashionable’. For instance, the case of Marijuana and homosexuality; this is only a trend in the US but through social media, a youth in India where it is highly prohibited would just copy the life of the Americans forgetting who they are and what they value. This is venom that is slowly killing the young generation.
Social media and internet have played a vital role in altering self-identity. There is a shift in people being more of external and less of internal beings. As mentioned earlier, social environment for instance parents, school among others play a vital role in determining our identities. In the early centuries let's say the 19th century; the social factors that influenced people's identities included parents, schools, extracurricular activities and peers among others. The social influence in most cases was positive. There was a negative influence, yes but it was outweighed by the positive influence. The social forces mostly resulted in affirmation since they acted as the mirror that reflected people's identities. In today’s world, the pendulum has swung to the negative extreme.
Social media is working hard to shift people from determining and bel...