Response to "Digital Nation"

Social Networking: Weapon or Tool?

Introduction

   As I walk inside the library I remind myself to keep my feet close together and my shoulders straight. I tell myself not to look anyone directly in the eye and to make the smallest carbon footprint possible until finding my seat amongst the mass of computer users. I sit in my swivel chair that resembles a plastic bubble, shielding me from any handshakes or conversation that I may have to partake. Putting my ear buds in, I begin my first online Sociology class. I exchange LOL’s and frowny emoticons with class mates, all here to learn about the same thing; the study of humans. Isn’t that ironic? I realized that something was wrong, and that I’d been spun into the interweb so tightly, that I now found it more comfortable to learn online rather than in a physical classroom. That semester I struggled trying to balance my school work with the temptation of one button standing in the way of me and my social life. Although there’s a (extremely ironic) social stigma attached to those NOT involved with social networking, it’s not as promising as the diehard Twitter and FaceBook users believe. Over using social networking can have detrimental effects on our education and how we learn, our interactions and relationships with family and friends and most importantly, how we view and treat ourselves. I’m here to put some air back into your lenses and pry your finger tips from your keyboard and back into the hands of your friends.

Human Relationships

   Social networking cites such as Face book, Twitter and YouTube offer a more convenient way of interacting with friends and family than actually physically seeing them.  Because of this, people are less likely to grab drinks while helping to heal a friend’s broken heart or go over to their aunt’s house to bake cookies. Instead we’re able to send messages, IM’s, shoutouts, wall posts, tag people, make statuses and even video chat on Skype. So what is interaction really? Not too long ago, it meant physical interaction, and now it just means communication. A Jan. 2012 Center for the Digital Future at the USC Annenberg School study found that the percentage of people reporting less face-to-face time with family in their homes rose from 8% in 2000 to 34% in 2011(World Internet Project, Salvador). Consequently, social networking has lead to stress and offline relationship problems, with 15% of face book users claiming that the networking cite has caused them to lose a friendship. In addition, 49.5% of students have reported being victims of bullying online and 33.7% reported committing bullying behavior online (Mishna, F “Cyber Bullying Behaviors among Middle and High School Students”). With statistics like these, it’s unfathomable that people would continue to support the idea that social networking doesn’t hinder, but improves their social life. However, it’s undeniable that sites like Facebook and Twitter gives us a sense of being connected to something bigger. For some, it’s their rising friend number or booming newsfeed. After all, 52 % of students have said that these sites have improved their relationships (Mishna F). But is the new generation just confused? Are we bending and stretching the definition of human relationships too much.

Deterioration of Self

   It’s easy to get bundled up in pajamas, snack on junk food and escape into a computer screen on a Friday night.  Unfortunately, I’ve experienced first hand that this is the new norm, and the majority of my friends are becoming more and more willing to miss out on that vital and necessary interaction with others that you’re supposed to experience as a teenager. Social media can be tricky because it leads the introverted in you to believe that you’re blossoming in your relationships, making you feel better about yourself. However, it can make the most extroverted person crawl into a cave. For example, the use of social networking sites is correlated with personality and brain disorders, such as the inability to have in-person conversations, a need for instant gratification, ADHD, and self-centered personalities, as well as addictive behaviors. In addition, social networking cites lack personal privacy; so much so that the government and future job prospects can view anything you post on the internet. (Stephen Marche, "Is Facebook Making Us Lonely?”) Although many praise these websites for giving them the opportunity to seek out jobs in the first place, it can usually turn around to bite them in the butt. Most of us absent mindedly post things we’d never want prospective employers to see. Social networking could ultimately lead to the destruction of the idea of our sacred self, and make us feel as if we’re just another sheep, wandering in the heard.

Academic Success

It’s no secret that social networking cites and the internet has made it incredibly easy to cheat on school tests and purchase or “borrow” papers from friends. Dishonesty is not only harmful to you academically but to your credibility and how you view yourself as well. In addition, students are more inclined to multitask, even if they’re not even aware that they’re doing it. A study was done on a male college student where they took an MRI of the  boy’s brain studying while listening to music and checking his face book twice every hour. Then an MRI was done where he studied without any distractions, along with two short breaks to go get some water and to walk around. The results were as expected, but a surprise to the student; he retains more information when he studies with fewer interactions (Tom Scheve, “5 Ways Science is Studying the Brain”). It is so easy to become easily distracted and wander off onto facebook or YouTube and just keep clicking on different links. Before you know it, you’ve just wasted two hours that you’ll never get back.
 

Conclusion

   I understand why social networking cites seems so enticing and fun, and I’m the first to admit that I enjoy it myself. However, I don’t want the next generation to lose sight of what it really means to interact with their family and friends, themselves and their education. It’s up to us to limit our internet usage and promote that verbally to our friends, not just over the internet. In moderation, like everything else, social networking can be an excellent tool for keeping up to date with current events and our peers. Today’s society is all about instant gratification, easy access and immediate satisfaction. So it makes since that most people are content with having more online relationships and fewer face to face ones. However, we don’t want to live in a digital nation where we lose sight of what it means to interact with others. Social Networking will be the demise to many young adult’s futures and the next generation to come. The internet can be a tool or a weapon, so use it wisely and don’t be so quick to take the easy way out.

RESOURCES:

Salvador, "Special Report: America at the Digital Turning Point," www.annenberg.usc.edu, Retrieved on 2/10/2013

Mishna, F. "Cyber Bullying Behaviors among Middle and High School Students," American Journal of Orthopsychiatry

Marche, Stephen "Is Facebook Making Us Lonely?" http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2012/05/is-facebook-making-us-lonely/308930/ Retrieved On 2/10/2013

 Scheve, Tom “5 Ways Science is Studying the Brain”, http://dsc.discovery.com/tv-shows/curiosity/topics/5-ways-science-studyi