English Essay Draft 3 (effects of social media)

Name: Kenneth Lim

Cyber is the most pressing problem linked to

In her TED lecture, Sheryl Turckle (2012), states that “As we expect more from technology, we expect less from each other”, and warns us of the danger of replacing the physical presence of each other with the companionship of social media. The presence of social media is prominent, social media and us, are now an inseparable entity. It has become a space where we can present our best self or who we want to be, not who we really are (Turkle, 2012).  According to a research conducted in Canada, social media is affecting the quality of relationships and intimacy between individuals (Dakin, 2014). The most pressing issue of them all would be what Tuckle (2012) calls ‘being alone together’ or how social media have provided us an avenue to replace people in our social circle, causing a wave of superficial relationships. This essay will describe this current phenomenon in Canada and address existing cum potential solutions.

Social media is a platform that brings people closer to each other. At the same time it helps to cluster people of common interest, thus forging new relationships (Dakin, 2014). However the quality of relationships has been jeopardized by technology due to the lack of intimacy, connection and the poor social media etiquette (Dakin, 2014). Due to the poor social media etiquette, it has created confusion on social practices. People are unaware on how often they should connect to our friends, or how our popularity is determined by the number of likes we received on social media platforms. Due to the attention we are receiving from our friends on social media, we have inadvertently diverted our attention away from those who mattered, such as the people around us or our close friends and family. I believe this is the worrisome issue that needs to be corrected. From studies conducted by UCLA, evidence suggests that teens increasingly prefer to communicate with their friends through texting. Sadly it makes them feel less connected and bonded than face-to-face communication. Although this might not seem like a major concern on an individual scale, it has brought pressing psychological impacts on relationships, on a larger scale. According to Turkle (2012), people are less able to relate to others, face-to-face, even though people appear to be connected on social media all the time. Despite the ease of communicating and contacting friends, people are becoming less emotionally connected to one another, causing what Turkle (2012) calls “being alone together”. The root of the problem is that social media generates a large audience, giving individuals a sense of affirmation, to their point of view. Thus generally, people who may have been through similar situations would give strong viewpoints. However users fail to understand that people are merely voicing their opinions, without any positive intention on the wellbeing of the individual. According to Turkle (2012), this is a pressing issue as the views and remarks from social media is a form of pretend empathy. When the individuals are faced with a real problem, social media can only provide them an avenue to confide their problem with. The people on social media do not empathize our situation or help us solve our problems (Turkle 2012). The repercussions on the prolonged usage of social media to relate our problems, causes us to close up to people around us. We have substituted our friends with social media. The lack of connection ultimately affects the connection between friends.

Despite how social media is jeopardizing face-to-face interactions, there are currently no corrective solutions to rectify the issue. However social media app creators are creating more interactive apps to help people create a deeper level of connection using social media. An example would be facetime and snapchat. Such apps allow visualisation of the people who you are chatting with. Although such apps are still not as similar as face-to-face conversations, they do help to foster a deeper level of connection. According to Dakin (2014), studies discovered that the closer the experience was to in-person conversation, the more emotionally connected the friends felt. For example, video chat rated higher than a phone call, and the phone created a closer connection than texting. However I believe the existing technology is still far from the ability to replicate the physical presence of a person. Despite the various interactive apps, there is still a paramount difference between social media and face-to-face interaction.

Despite the negative impact of social media on our relationships, I do not believe our usage of technology will change anytime soon; neither will technology be able to replicate the face-to-face interaction. However I believe there are ways to alleviate the situation. The root of the issue lies in the poor quality of online interaction, due to lack of proper social media etiquette. Hence I believe education on social media should be increased. This may help to solve the current confusion on how often one should relate to social media or how to strike a balance between social media and face-to-face interaction. Next, we should shift the preferred mode of conversation back to face-to-face interaction with schools providing the most suitable platform. Compulsory conversational lessons should be introduced in the lesson curriculum. Not only will students feel less awkward relating to their peers, it fosters a closer understanding of their peers. Lastly stricter legislation can be placed on social media apps. Similar to the age requirement for computer games in Singapore, there should be a minimum age for certain social apps, especially social apps on phones. Government can ensure the minimum age is met by cooperating with the telecommunication companies to take down the particulars of the user. An example would be setting an age requirement for tinder. This is a matchmaking social media app that allows you to connect with strangers of your choice. The app may not be suitable to youths who may not be mature in managing relationships.

In conclusion, social media has undoubtedly aided us in the ease of connecting with others, however the cost of this convenience, may be the replacement of face-to-face interaction. If the situation persists, people may be less able to relate to others. In the extreme cases, it may cause people to be Isolated. I earnestly hope that humanity is able to differentiate true companions form pretend empathy.

Bibliography

Dakin, P. (25 Feb, 2014). www.cbc.ca/news. Retrieved March, 2014, from http://www.cbc.ca/news/health/social-media-affecting-teens-concepts-of-friendship-intimacy-1.2543158

Turkle, S. (April, 2012). Retrieved March, 2014, from www.ted.com: http://www.ted.com/talks/sherry_turkle_alone_together/transcript?language=en