Relation between technology and social change

Introduction 

Technology has been the greatest force behind the social change that is experienced in human beings. The influence of technology on the cognitive systems of human beings is quite significant. This factor has created a very strong relationship between technology and social change. As technology advances, human beings experience social change. This relationship is mutual in the sense that technological advancement influences social change, but also developments in the society lead to new innovations in technology. Particularly, technological advancements in personal computer, cell phone and the internet have had a very strong relation with three major sociological perspectives that include the equilibrium model, digital divide and cultural lag.

Impact of the personal computer, cellular phones, and the Internet on society

The increased use of computers has had a very significant impact on the social lives of many people, especially the adult youths. Personal computer is used for various tasks at home, in school and even the workplace. Apart from assisting people in doing constructive work, personal computer has been the reason behind the failure of many students in the high school and universities because it acts as a distraction. The personal computer together with the internet has enabled many youths to access content that ends up changing their lives. For instance, the popular culture is widely spread through the internet. Behaviors like addiction to drugs and alcoholism are also spread through the internet. 

The use of computers has increased dramatically over the years, and the use of computers has changed the lives of many people and how they do things (Liedtke & Barbara, 2015). Computers are a very complex tool, but they are also very useful. Computers can be used for many different functions such as; keeping in touch with distant relatives and friends, research, conducting business, doing homework, or for entertainment. Computers are a very useful piece of technology that most people have and use either at home or work. Being on the computer can take away from being productive and cause procrastination for most. Everton, Jolton, and Mastrangelo (2006) state, “Computers have undoubtedly changed the way people work, but they have also changed the way people avoid and sabotage work” (p. 730).

The existing sociological issues are brought about by the personal computer and the use of smartphones. With personal computers and smartphones now accessible to even the youths, people tend to be engaged on the internet for long hours. Many browse for information about different topics, other spend the better part of their time blogging and tweeting and facebooking. Therefore, many users are now not in touch with the real life situation, but living in the virtual world of the internet. The society has become socially inept as a result of the advancing technology. For instance, the reliance on the use of smartphones and personal computers for purposes of communication has made it difficult for some individuals to hand-write clear sentences. Moreover, people are now losing the skills of good dialoguing and negotiating because a lot of their communication is done online through the internet (Abrams, 2013). Moreover, with the increased communication that is done online, the society is bound to have a generation that cannot understand some of the non-verbal cues, which are normally used during physical interaction among people. Importantly, the society may have a generation that has no physical interpersonal skills hence socialization could be hampered in the real life situation. 

Describe the equilibrium model, the digital divide, and cultural lag in relation to these technologies and social change

The equilibrium model deals with changes that occur in a part of society and how adjustments must be made in different parts. If this does not happen then society's equilibrium will not exist, and problems may arise. It is also known that people who can access the internet may have many sociological advantages. For instance, some businesses may only accept online applicants, resumes and online payments. Internet users also have the ability to contact others from distant locations. This situation causes an inequality between those who can access the internet through technology and the ones lack the financial ability to own electronic gadgets in order to use it. People who lack access to the internet are also geographically limited about available jobs, health care, and academic opportunities.

Crossman (2015) defines cultural lag as what happens in a social system when the cultural ideas used to regulate social life do not keep pace with other social changes. The digital divide is an increasing gap between unfortunate members of society, including the poor, rural, and elderly part of the population who may not have accesses or the resources to the Internet or a computer, where the middle class and wealthy do have the materials to access these resources.

How technology has influenced social epidemiology, health and the environment

Technology has huge health impacts including eye problems for those who stay on the personal computer screens for very long hours. It is possible to develop eye health complications because of the radioactive rays from the screen. Technology has also led to the increased air and sound pollution of the environment because of the loud music played by people and the gases emitted into the atmosphere by vehicles and factory machines. Technology has also affected social epidemiology through enabling increased and easy interaction among people through the internet.

Emerging form of technology and its potential consequences for society

The internet has been the biggest form of technology that has had a huge impact on the social lives of people. Through the internet, communication has become very easy since there are platforms used for sending messages and contacting friends who are very far. Social media networks like Facebook and Twitter are of great essence when it comes to social change that is being experienced across the world. Through social media networks, the interaction among people of different cultures has increased. The distance barrier has been broken and now a user can have a live chat with somebody who is many miles away in another continent through social media websites. The net result of this increased interaction among people is change in their social lives. People get new friends who end up influencing the way they socialize with people. Some users are influenced to become womanizers because of the pornographic content, which is plenty on these internet websites. People change their fashions and adopt new styles of dressing, which they learn from the social media websites. 

Today, with the increased interaction on the social media networks, people have started to enhance ties of friendships by forming groups and pages, where they share common issues and plan for their future activities. In fact, a lot of the political demonstrations in countries mainly done by the activists are organized through the social media networks. People are mobilized through these sites and encouraged to turn out in order to perform a given activity on a set date.

Conclusion

Technology has had a very strong influence on social change. The growing interaction among people over long distances is causing change of social values as individuals learn about new ways of life and cultures. Moreover, the social beliefs of people are now changing because of the increasing knowledge got through browsing for new information on the internet search engines. The relation between technology and social change is, therefore, very strong. 

References

Abrams, L. (2013, January 10). Study: A 3 Second Interruption Doubles Your Odds of Messing Up. Retrieved from http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2013/01/study-a-3-second-interruption-doubles-your-odds-of-messing-up/267008/ . 

Crossman, A. (2015). Cultural Lag. Retrieved from http://sociology.about.com/od/C_Index/g/Cultural-Lag.htm . 

Liedtke, M., & Barbara, O. P. (2015, Jul 10). Computer dependency raises risks.  Pantagraph  Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/1698476750?accountid=458 . 

Mastrangelo, P., Everton, W., & Jolton, J. (2006, December). Personal Use of Work Computers. Cyberpsychology & Behavior, 9 (6), 730-741.