Problem Introduction: We all know that technology can both help us or hurt us socially. So what are some of the problems that technology causes to plague our social lives? The following paper summarizes of few of these problems. 

C2 Problem Summary

Technology has been changing how we communicate with each other for centuries. In the Nineteenth Century, for example, Samuel Morse created a language just using dots, spaces, and dashes to send through a machine that activated an electromagnet, causing a bell to ring in that pattern over a mile away.  This language was named Morse Code, and the machine a telegraph machine ("Morse Code & the Telegraph."). This was the beginning of a long winding road to advanced communication. Since then, technology has continued to develop at an exponential rate. Rapid advances in technology in recent years have left our society drowning in resources and distractions. So has it shaped the way we interact with each other for the better or worse? I plan to investigate that question by taking a look at social interaction in the distant past, the introduction to social media and its effects, and the myriad of apps available to us that propose to make our social lives more efficient.

       To begin our summary of this problem, we should first take a look at how technology has changed in the last few decades. After the invention of the telephone in 1876, technology that allowed us to communicate more easily with others continued to pour out. There was the radio in the late 19th century, and in the early 20th century, televisions began to become a household staple- news stations were particularly important because they allowed information to be passed along more efficiently. The need to communicate everywhere at any time with anyone grew, and with that the first mobile car phone came along in the 1940’s. This totally changed the game with how we perceived communication. Eventually through improvement and innovation this evolved to the first mobile phone. By the 80’s the handheld mobile phone became a status symbol, and by the 90’s almost everyone had them along with email.  These inventions were the beginning of a rapid race to perfectly seamless and efficient communication with the rest of society.

       One of the (and some would argue the most) important innovations in recent years was the invention of text messaging. This revolutionized the way we talk to each other, some argue for the better and some argue for the worse. There’s no doubt that text messaging has begun to take over the phone call, as Americans ages 18-29 send and receive an average of nearly 88 text messages per day, compared to 17 phone calls (Kluger). In “We never talk any more: The problem with text messaging”,  Jeffrey Kluger gives his opinion on talking over the phone:

“I find it intrusive and somehow presumptuous. It sounds off insolently whenever it chooses and expects me to drop whatever I'm doing and, well, engage. With others! When I absolutely must, I take the call, but I don't do a very good job of concealing my displeasure. A close family member once offered his opinion that I exhibit the phone manners of a goat, then promptly withdrew the charge — out of fairness to goats.”

He goes on to argue that texting provides a conversation that he can control. Texting and email allow a person to decide how long communications take place, exactly what they’re going to say, and further the outlets allow them to decide whether a conversation will even take place at all.

      Others don’t feel as warmly about the idea of texting or emailing as the main source of communication with someone. In “The Negative Aspects of Text Messaging”, Cesar Marquez quotes a psychology major, Dania Diaz:

“Text messaging is dangerous, not only does it ruin social interaction between humans, writing skills and expression. Everything becomes so impersonal and simple.”

     This observation is a huge talking point among people and how they view today’s technology. Like Diaz, there are a lot of people that believe that texting is ruining social skills and the ability to empathize. Regardless of which view is the “better” one, one thing can be agreed upon: the greed for better and more efficient ways to communicate is escalating. The Art Institutes blog talks about just that:

“The cell phone has changed and developed so rapidly in the past decade that it seems as though almost anything you can imagine is possible for the future. According to Jones, the convergence of all our tech gadgets into one mobile device will continue to advance.  He anticipates that “the majority of the hardware and the software can be moved to ‘the cloud’ and the product will mainly be comprised of the input and the display.””

      As the cell phone and computer continue to develop and evolve rapidly, so does the communication that goes on inside of them. As an attempt at further improving the way we socialize with others, modern social media came to be. Inventions like “Facebook” and “Myspace” made it easy for people to connect with others, only in multiple ways like through messaging, photos, and even “poking”. Like with texting and anything else, there are differing opinions on whether social networking is helping or hurting us as a society. In "The Positive Impact Of Social Networking Sites On Society [Opinion].", Dave Parrack writes about various ways that social media is improving society and the way we communicate with others. He believes that using these sites provide an excellent way to meet people who share the same interests:

“Facebook, for example, asks you to list who and what you are into right from the start, meaning common ground with others is much easier to find. On Twitter you will follow those who have something to say that you’re interested in, making connections with like-minded individuals much easier than is possible offline.”

      Other opinions he gives include that social media allows us to build close relationships with people from anywhere and to stay in touch with the rest of the world.

      Parrack’s opinion can be easily contradicted however. In "The Negative Effect of Social Media on Society and Individuals.", Brian Jung talks about how he believes that social media is giving people a false sense of connection with others by quoting research from Cornell University:

“According to Cornell University's Steven Strogatz, social media sites can make it more difficult for us to distinguish between the meaningful relationships we foster in the real world, and the numerous casual relationships formed through social media. By focusing so much of our time and psychic energy on these less meaningful relationships, our most important connections, he fears, will weaken.”

This is a crucial observation, as it could mean that we lose touch with the people we should be connecting with most.

    The various social media outlets also inspired a wealth of social apps- common ones being dating apps. Dating apps are very controversial, one of the most being the popular “Tinder” app. “Tinder” is a phone app that allows people to swipe through photos of potential mates and message the ones they like; each profile is linked to the user’s Facebook profile, ensuring legitimacy (Koulouris). This app brings a lot of differing opinions due to its lack of depth-the user swipes right or left depending on the photo they see, without a lot of other information about the potential mates’ interests. Despite this, this app is incredibly popular-which brings what some people think is one of the biggest benefits of it. In “"My Tinder Experience: The Pros and Cons”, Rebecca Earl talks about how she loves tinder because it’s so popular. She believes that it allows her to see a more diverse group of potential matches. She also loves the convenience and efficiency of the app:

     “I like the fact that I can connect with new people while I am in my pyjamas at home. And then I can decide whether they are worthy of the effort of me getting dressed to meet them in person. Need I say more.”

The opposing opinions include a concern that seeing a picture of someone’s face does not necessarily equate to whether that potential mate will be compatible in personality. This is brought up in the article  "The Pros and Cons of Tinder Dating App". Christopher Koulouris writes:

“Before you all rush to join Tinder, researchers have found that the approach might also be limited, as one’s appearances and our attraction toward certain looks doesn’t necessarily inform the viewer about a prospective date’s personality.”

Besides looking at the effectiveness of the app, we can also look at how apps like this may us a society. Some argue that it has added to the loss of empathy and the increase in disconnection from the real world. Apps like this may mean lower self esteem for everyone, as Sam Parker discusses in his article “How Tinder Made Me Hate My Own Face”:

“What three weeks or so on Tinder has taught me is that my own face isn’t very attractive at all, or why else would every last one of the beautiful women I’ve eagerly swiped ‘yes’ to have looked into my own jumble of flesh and sinew and swiped ‘no’? Who can refute such basic biology, backed up by the rules of probability?”

      Lastly, we can take a look at how all of these recent additions to our technology have affected the social gap between generations. In the beginning of this summary, I gave a short view of what social interaction was like a few decades ago. That view should represent a generation of people that now have grown up and had children that have grown up on today’s technology. This huge difference in ways to socialize has caused a generation gap that largely affects not only children and their parents, but anyone that has a couple of decades of age between them.  For example, while the phone is still the predominant form of communication between people, the way we use them varies between generations. Suren Ramasubbu does an excellent job of  illustrating this:

“Youngsters use their phones for a variety of activities such as taking photos, texting, going online, instant messaging, emailing, playing games, listening to music, and even recording and watching videos while adults progressively according to their age progression, restrict the use of these devices to fewer and fewer activities.”

      According to Ramasubbu, this means that today’s youth will undoubtedly experience difficulty with communicating with other older generations and vice versa. Further, think about dating with an age gap. Do you text them if they’re younger than you? Join them on “Tinder” perhaps? If they’re older, do you win their heart by learning how to have a proper phone conversation? Should you learn how to mail a letter?

In conclusion, I hope to have given a comprehensive view of this ongoing debate/problem: Has the development of all of these different technologies and the dependence that we’ve developed on the software and apps inside of them hurt how we interact with society, or helped us? The ballot is out.

Works Cited

   Earl, Rebecca`. "My Tinder Experience: The Pros and Cons - Rebecca Earl." Rebecca Earl. N.p., 29 July 2015. Web. 09 Feb. 2016.

   Jung, Brian. "The Negative Effect of Social Media on Society and Individuals." Small

Business. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 Feb. 2016.

Kluger, Jeffrey. "We Never Talk Any More: The Problem with Text Messaging - CNN.com." CNN. Cable News Network, 31 Aug. 2012. Web. 09 Feb. 2016.

Koulouris, Christopher. "The Pros and Cons of Tinder Dating App" TheBlot Magazine. N.p., 16 Dec. 2013. Web. 09 Feb. 2016.

Maas, Megan. "Parents, If Your Kids Have Any of These 10 Dangerous Apps, It's Time to Hit Delete." For Every Mom. N.p., 23 Nov. 2014. Web. 09 Feb. 2016.

Marquez, Cesar. "Negative Aspects of Text Messaging - Borderzine." Borderzine. N.p., 21 Oct. 2009. Web. 09 Feb. 2016.

"Morse Code & the Telegraph." History.com. A&E Television Networks, 2009. Web. 09 Feb. 2016.

Parker, Sam. "How Tinder Made Me Hate My Own Face." Esquire. Esquire Magazine, 14 Dec. 2013. Web. 09 Feb. 2016.

Parrack, Dave. "The Positive Impact Of Social Networking Sites On Society [Opinion]." MakeUseOf. N.p., 19 Apr. 2012. Web. 09 Feb. 2016.

Ramasubbu, Suren. "From Gen X to Y and Z: Technology and the Generation Gap." The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 24 June 2015. Web. 16 Feb. 2016.

"The History and Evolution of Cell Phones." The Art Institutes Blog. The Art Institute, n.d. Web. 09 Feb. 2016.