• Question: Do you think with all the social medias, we are becoming less social?

    Asked by Milgram to Ben, Sam, Kirsty, Maggi, Rose on 13 Jun 2017. This question was also asked by Jess, Becky, Beth.
    • Photo: Kirsty Miller

      Kirsty Miller answered on 13 Jun 2017:

      Hi 🙂
      Great question! I think in many ways we are! The problem with social media is that although it can make us more ‘connected’, the connections don’t tend to be of great quality. Often the communication is quite shallow, and we obviously don’t get the same connection as we do if we’re actually with someone! People tend to benefit from being with each other – seeing, hearing or being able to have contact with each other – none of which can happen over social media – so it’s really making us miss out on some of the most important parts of communication!
      That said, social media can be very beneficial for people who are shy, or find it difficult to meet people, or are ill or unable to leave the house. In these cases it can be fantastic as it allows people to make friends easily, find people who they have things in common with or even find support groups.
      So yes, in a way social media is making us become less social as it’s taking up a lot of time and stopping us from spending time with people face to face. But – it can also have its benefits, helping people who find it hard to make friends in other ways 🙂

    • Photo: Sam Carr

      Sam Carr answered on 13 Jun 2017:

      I don’t think I’d say that social media is making is “less” social. In fact, in some cases it may be making some people “more” social (it’s easier for some people to interact online because many of the threatening aspects of face to face interaction aren’t there). So, certain types of people may really benefit socially from online interaction. A recent study of isolated old people in Japan showed that they really, really loved the connection they formed through a social media network dedicated to them sharing stories, connecting, and being known by each other.

      But on the other hand, I think it’s less about social media making us “less” social – but more about social media changing what it MEANS to be social. If you think about it, things like Facebook have changed HOW we socialise – and that has consequences.

      So, removing face to face interaction has been shown (in the case of cyberbullying, for example) to make it “easier” to say mean things – because you can’t see the emotional response of the person you’re speaking to (if you’re mean to someone face to face often their emotional reaction prompts you to stop – you know when you’ve gone too far – you see that you’ve hurt them). With cyberbullying, it has been shown that bullies are more likely to continue hurting someone because they have no idea of the consequences of what they’re saying in any real sense.

    • Photo: Rose Turner

      Rose Turner answered on 17 Jun 2017:

      Socia media can certainly have a positive impact – I know I would have lost touch with lots of schoool-friends if it hadn’t been for Facebook! However, I think that the technology with which we access it can have an impact on our face-to-face social experiences. Now that most of us have mobile phones and other portable electronic technology, lots of people find that they are always thinking about what’s going on on Facebook, or Twitter, or SnapChat or WhatsApp. Some research has suggested that those little notifications that show we have a new comment or message can activate the reward centres in our brains in a similar way to addictive drugs! So social media can clearly have a powerful impact on us!
      Have you had that experience when you’re chatting with a friend and they suddenly start doing things on their phone in the middle of the conversation? I think they call this ‘phubbing’ (phone snubbing). I think that’s when the impact can be negative or make us ‘less social’ as you say. Because can distract us from the meaningful conversations we might be having in person. So I think social media can be fantastic for connecting us with others, but a challenge for us as a society is to make sure we manage it in a way that it doesn’t detract from our face-to-face time with friends and family. 😀

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