Effects of Technology on Communication & Human Interaction

Divine Maduike Prof: Kristin Vogt ENG 112 17 April 2018 Effects of Technology and Social Media on Communication and Human Interaction Technology and social media have become part of human existence. Social media has revolutionized the relationship between human beings in many ways, including the behavior of humans. However, rapid advancement and the increased reliance on social media and technology have elicited different opinions from people all over the world. While technology and social media have facilitated communication between people by breaking the distance barrier, they have also damaged the aspect of social interaction between human beings because face-to-face communication has been drastically reduced. Social media and technology have enabled people to keep in touch over long distances. According to Burke and Kraut (268), frequent and constant communication between human beings strengthens social ties, and eventually improves the well-being of people. The use of social network sites such as Facebook facilitates constant communication between people, enabling them to maintain their social ties. People are able to benefit from online communication, especially from their loved ones, if the messages are personalized and intended for them (Burke and Kraut 279). People do not need to take long before communicating due to distance anymore because they can keep in touch in real time through instant messaging and video calls. Social media and technology have especially been useful to parents and their kids who are in college. In the old days, the only way for parents and college students to keep in touch was through letters and telephone calls which did not happen often. However, parents and their kids are now able to communicate even on a daily basis, thus easing the transition between leaving home and joining college for both parents and students, which would otherwise be very challenging. In addition, the social ties between friends who separate either due to relocation to other States or to join college are maintained and strengthened because they are able to keep in touch despite the distance. Further, online communication with strong ties through the various social platforms promotes social support between human beings (Burke and Kraut 269). When people have a problem and they share it via the social platforms, they get ideas and suggestions from other users. Social media has been used as a platform for people to offer support or ask for support from others (Maier, Laumer and Eckhardt 3). This is especially the case if they are close friends with strong ties, who are willing to put more effort in helping their peers. In addition, social media and technology allow people to make new friends, which in turn expands their social circle, thus increasing their social support (Zhan, Sun and Wang 15). For example, when one has a loved one who is suffering from a certain disease, sharing this information online can be beneficial to them because out of the many online friends they have, quite a number of them have experienced a similar situation and can therefore offer support. This support may be in terms of information on the best medical practitioner who is well recognized for handling such a disease, or in terms of how best to deal with the sick loved one. In some cases, people are able to use their online presence to appeal for funds to pay for medical bills and this kind of support gets better as the social circle expands. Thus an increased social support will foster interpersonal relationships between people and draw them closer because they feel connected to each other in one way or another. Technology and social media have also played a major role in connecting people who share common interests (Csorba and Slaney). Strangers who have similar interests are able to connect with each other and expand their knowledge base by staying in touch without ever having to meet in person. People are able to create Facebook pages and other social groups using technology, where they discuss issues affecting them. For example, people from marginalized communities, such as homosexuals, are able to connect with each other from all over the world and fight for their rights. Others are able to participate in online activism where they advocate for change through one global voice and are able to share resources (Csorba and Slaney). The use of hashtags to create awareness on issues such as gender equality and fair pay has increased since people with similar views and interests are able to raise their voices together, attracting the right audience. Such is the case with the teachers’ movement in West Virginia which used Facebook to mobilize teachers and students who are interested in the cause and bring them together to fight for fairness. However, social media and technology have increased the social overload for most people (Zhan, et al. 15). This kind of social overload may push people to be alienated from others, especially if the pressure is too much for them to handle. Social overload arises from the many friend request and online social requests that tec...