Do not get me wrong, I have
been fully aware of the impact that technology has had on society's social
skills. It is absolutely no secret that teenagers (and adults) tend to be
more comfortable in communicating via technology than in person. Texting,
chatting, posting and sharing seem to be the way to go. Additionally, more and
more people I talk to admit to me that they prefer emailing or texting someone over
actually speaking to them on the phone. I, myself, get jumpy whenever my phone
rings because I am so weary that it might be about some sort of work or social
"obligation" - this while normally it is just my husband phoning,
which is alright. Point is, verbal communication and face-to-face contact is on
the decrease, and I am wondering what the future may hold and what the impact
of this might be on future generations.
I see that, instead of
sorting out issues in a civilised manner, people prefer what I call "hate
statuses" on Facebook, BBM, WhatsApp etc. etc. etc. Backhand
comments and hateful insults are being posted disguised as statuses, and I
assume the culprit is supposed to notice immediately when these actually refer
to him or her. "I don't exactly hate you, but if you were on fire and I
had water, I’d drink it." was one of the posts I saw on Facebook the other
day. Coincidentally I knew what the story was, and who the "culprits"
and "victims" were, but I immediately felt annoyed, since doing
things like that only worsen the situation and do not resolve anything.
Besides, it is tacky. Especially when family, friends and other loved ones are
involved. You sort your matters out with decency, and not where hundreds
of viewers can read the latest in the "So-and-So-Saga". So,
instead of proper conflict resolution, individuals have started settling for an
indirect, hateful and public approach.
Aside from bad conflict
resolution skills, individuals in society have less and less to say to one
another, OR technology is just way better company. Looking at coffee dates,
date nights, social events etc., more than half of the people around the table,
fire or board game will be on their phones. And ironically, most people accept
it that way.
High School Reunions get
weird, because everyone already knows what everyone is doing, how many kids
they have, how much weight they lost or gained, how many times they have been
divorced, whether or not they're employed etc. etc. etc. All from Facebook.
Viola! (By the way, nobody is ever as happy as their Facebook photos say - just
saying).
This brings me to the very
thing that many of us do. Since we do not have anything to say to one another
in person anymore, we resort to watching movies and series on television. And
then it hit me two days ago: what a load of dialogue! The characters in the
stories are actually talking to one another - like ALL THE TIME... So we spend
our days watching and listening to fictional characters doing the one thing we
forgot how to do: TALKING.
What does the future hold?
I do not know.... if it was not
for our need to actually eat food, I assume our mouths would have grown shut. I
think, in terms of communication, the future looks silent. And for
tech-developers, this silence is golden.
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