According to Franzen (2000), many public discussions focus on the internet and its potential effects on the society. A significant number of people expect that the World Wide Web will foster global trade of services and products, and consequently improve economic wealth. However, according to Franzen, social scientists are concerned that there are possible undesirable social effects of the internet. In light of these concerns, this essay argues that the widespread and prolonged use of the internet reduces the size of the users’ local social networks, diminishes communication within the family, and escalates the feelings of depression and loneliness.
In regard to the reduction of local social networks, it is crucial to understand how the internet works. Currently, the invention of portable computers, social media sites, and smartphones have changed the way people interact with one another. As a consequence, there are two worlds that have been created: the real world and the virtual world. The real world is that which people communicate with one another face to face while the virtual world is where people communicate through the internet. Rosen (2018) posits that people’s connections through the virtual world have increased but those in the real world have diminished. The reason is that people spend too much time communicating with each other through the internet and spend less talking to each other. The reduced local social networks means that people are retracting back to themselves, hence becoming lonelier.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
Before the invention and spread of the internet, families used to gather and spend more time together. Parents or guardians would use the time to talk to their children while children would consult or address problems or grievances to their parents. For example, if a child attended a boarding school and went home for holidays everyone would be anxious to listen to the child’s progress and experience at school. However, presently children spend more time on social media sites than they spend with their parents. Some prominent examples of the sites include: Facebook, Twitter, Whatsapp, and Instagram. Wolf (2018) adds that even adult members of the family may be glued to internet devices and neglect their parental or family roles. It is because of the urge to check their devices from time to time. When people are used to vibrations or alerts from these devices, they become anxious and would want to check them occasionally. The results are awkward moments when family members stick to their gadgets without talking to each other.
Feelings of depression and loneliness result from the content, which is published on the sites, especially social media sites. Most people who post their pictures on social media sites seem to be living the best life even if it could not be true in real life. Such posts cause unnecessary pressure, and most people would want to belong to that seemingly prosperous group. When people cannot keep up with the standards of their virtual friends, they tend to develop depression and become lonely (Waytz & Gray, 2018). Additionally, people would want to receive many likes and comments on their posts and when they fail to get them, they develop a low sense of self-esteem.
Conclusively, it is evident that the internet may be having undesirable social consequences on people. While people seem to be expanding their social space virtually, they are consequently diminishing their local social contacts. People spend too much time communicating with virtual friends, many of whom they have never met at the expense of those that are within their reach. It is, therefore, accurate to conclude that technology is making people lonely.
References
Franzen, A. (2000). Does the Internet make us lonely? European Sociological Review , 16 (4), 427-438.
Rosen, L. (2018). Connecting Virtually Isn’t Like Real World Bonding. D3jc3ahdjad7x7.cloudfront.net . Retrieved 21 September 2018, from https://d3jc3ahdjad7x7.cloudfront.net/0M5hYm9ALYnPgtK3CfFWENr80ci6Pad4AvHaoqzxILQvPvjq.pdf
Waytz, A., & Gray, K. (2018). Does Online Technology Make Us More or Less Sociable? A Preliminary Review and Call for Research. Perspectives on Psychological Science , 1745691617746509.
Wolf, S. (2018). Does Technology Make Us More Alone? Ahn8thgradeclassof2015.weebly.com . Retrieved 21 September 2018, from http://ahn8thgradeclassof2015.weebly.com/uploads/4/6/4/0/46404787/summerwolfeditorial.pdf
