rkipp
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Post by rkipp on Apr 13, 2016 5:01:29 GMT
I agree with the idea that social media has negatively impacted our interpersonal relationships, yet at the same time I am one of those people who spends time on social media to "catch up" with friends and family, causing me to be less likely to actually call or visit with them; I am sure I am not the only one who faces this paradox. With that being said, I think that shows how addictive social media is and I think it will only get worse if we do not attempt to control it.
In terms of a solution, I think we have to force ourselves to put away our devices. I have a professor who does not allow any electronic devices in lecture - including laptops. We must take all our notes by hand and if he sees you with a phone out he yells at you in the middle of the lecture. Personally, I love this idea because it is so much easier to focus and I remember the material better. While I think technology has amazing benefits, we as a society need to learn more about self-control and when to put the device down. If we do not learn to control our use of devices, our future will suffer.
An interesting article (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/suren-ramasubbu/does-technology-impact-a-childs-emotional-intelligence_b_7090968.html) discussed how the increased usage of technology is causing children to lack the ability to recognize emotions and a decrease in empathy. This concept connects to the other article for this week's class about bystander intervention. Perhaps because of the increase in technology, there is a decrease in empathy, leading to more apathy and thus less intervention to help others in need. Overall, the prolonged usage of social media has many more drastic effects than just procrastination.
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Post by Giulia Sperandio on Apr 13, 2016 6:32:15 GMT
Even though our attention span has diminished time after time, I believe this is an adjustment for our fast-paced society and it is part of our values. No one is to blame that we are preys or marketers or constantly seeking for something new to the point of going by things too fast and losing our attention. Social media and the internet help us achieve our goals by giving us multiple information and allowing us to expand our knowledge. I tried to search for benefits of short attention span and I actually could not find any. But instead i found a website with some tips to help improve attention span. lifehacker.com/how-can-i-improve-my-short-attention-span-949006493 The article about texting made me realize that instant gratification is what we seek nowadays and we get nervous about a missing text or a delayed one. And it is very odd to think that one person can seem more "valuable" or wanted for taking more time to reply to a text or for being less available. |
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bdang
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Post by bdang on Apr 13, 2016 6:36:03 GMT
I think the concept of instant gratification is prominent in our society. Obviously, I have been victim for falling into the instant gratification trap. It is often difficult to fight off instant gratification, especially in a society that places so much emphasis on personal achievement. I feel that people living in Eastern cultures are more likely and capable of avoiding instant gratification. With more emphasis placed on group and community success, it would seem that people of Eastern society look less to act for the betterment of themselves and more to sacrifice for the benefit of the group.
This contributes to the shortening of society's attention span because everything pushes towards efficiency: we want to get the most done in the least amount of time. Waiting is especially difficult when a positive reward is placed in front of us, despite a larger reward that could be earned in the future. We want to get a task done, and then immediately move on to the next task. In terms of marketing, techniques are implemented in order to get the most out of our short attention spans. In commercials or films, quick cuts are used to hold our attention. Long scenes tend to bore us. The overall purpose is to convey the essential facts in the most efficient way possible, then the consumers can continue on with their busy lives.
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Post by emmajessicalin on Apr 14, 2016 2:36:45 GMT
rkippI always take notes with my computer so I understand how tempting it is to just go on the computer or text during lectures. A friend recently told me about this smartphone app where if you lock your phone for a long enough period of time during class you can earn points and use those points to get discounts at restaurants in Westwood. Really helpful for staying focused during class!
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rkipp
New Member
Posts: 34
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Post by rkipp on Apr 14, 2016 3:22:39 GMT
emmajessicalinYea I have been hearing a lot about that app! I find it interesting how now we can be rewarded for something as simple as staying off our phones - again showing how the addiction to our phones is so prevalent nowadays.
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Post by nicolegreenbaum on Apr 14, 2016 4:11:33 GMT
I also agree with Paola. Social networks are massively addictive. Most people I know check and interact on social sites constantly throughout the day. Not only that, but people have no idea how much actual time they spend on social media. In fact, a study was done by Cornell Information Science looking at the difficulty people had quitting Facebook. Participants in the study completely intended to quit using Facebook, and believed they could quit for 99 days, but many couldn't live without it for more than a few days. The addictive aspect of social networking is associated with FOMO– fear of missing out. People on Facebook are constantly posting things, sharing news, and talking to each other. Our society has become obsessed with being updated on the newest statuses, posts, and pictures of our friends and family out of fear that if they don't check their social media, they will miss out on something big. I have even caught myself closing Instagram and then opening it again moments later just to see if any of my friends have posted anything new. We're being manipulated by the social sites and content creators to waste far too much time in a way that benefits them, not us. |
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Post by cliffordzhang on Apr 14, 2016 4:52:40 GMT
You're being "manipulated" because that's literally the objective of every corporation in the entire world. They're trying to get your money and your attention, but in the end, the common factor is still YOU. Everything on this thread makes it seem like social media is actively trying to be actively malicious to your life but obviously that's not the case. Social media is something revolutionary and convenient. If you think it's harmful, don't use it. Actively try to improve yourself. But if you NOTICE and even continue to complain about your "addiction", that obviously means you have chosen to make social media something very important in your life and that is not necessarily a bad thing. It's partly your fault too if you think you are "wasting far too much time" that does not benefit you. Do something about it.
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