Modern technologies have changed our life. People have constant access to the internet where they spend a lot of time working, studying and communicating with each other. Technologies make communication easier and let people communicate at long distances. There has been a movement away from face-to-face meetings to virtual communication. Technology has brought a revolutionary transformation in the way we communicate with each other (Vitak).
The influence of modern technologies on interpersonal communication has a lot of advantages as well as disadvantages. The world is like a global village where people can communicate with each other from all corners of our planet. It facilitates people’s lives in many ways. People can keep in touch at long distances. There are a lot of opportunities on the internet. People can earn money, have an education and even fall in love via the internet (Holtz). Although the use of the internet has enlarged the social circles of many people it makes it quite complicated to communicate face to face. Each individual may provide only the information which he/she wants and as the result, both of them have wrong representation and unrealistic expectations about each other. The bonds between people become less firm and it changes human relationships in the whole society. People have become lonely despite the hundreds of virtual friends (Thomas).
According to the statistics of 2008, young people are accustomed to communication via modern technologies while old people give their preference to face-to-face communication (Vitak). Why do more and more people prefer to communicate via the internet? It is very convenient to solve all problems sitting in front of the screen. It is not necessary to spend time getting to a particular place to visit other people. Technologies save our time and at the same time stealing it. More than that, it is easier to communicate via the internet. Young people may have hundreds of virtual friends, communicate with them and get acquainted with new ones what has become difficult for them in a real life. It is not necessary to control your behavior or emotions which may spoil your image. The other people imagine you in the way you want they do it. On the internet, you may be the person that you want to be. But who you are in real life, nobody knows.
As the result, people spend more time communicating via the internet and they lose the skills of real communication. They are accustomed to working with their fingers typing all information they want to tell without straining their tongues. People avoid a lot of awkward situations which confuse them in real-life communicating with the help of the internet. If you don’t know something that you are asking for, you may easily find it on the internet and create the image of a well-educated and clever person while in real communication you may be puzzled by this question. People who spend a lot of time communicating via the internet are accustomed to using acronyms, emoticons and abbreviations in their writing which spoil their communicating skills. It becomes more difficult for young people to be eloquent in real communication and to express their thoughts in an appropriate way.
Modern technologies make people more connected with the world on the one hand and more isolated on the other hand. The ease of communication provided by technologies has improved our lives and makes them impersonal. Real emotions and feelings cannot be replaced by the convenience of social nets, emails and video conferences. Charles Dickens writes: “Electric communication will never be a substitute for the face of someone who with their soul encourages another person to be brave and true”.
Works Cited
Holtz, Shel. “The impact of New Technologies on Internal Communication”. Melcrum Publishing. 2012.
Thomas, Matthew. “The Impacts of Technology on Communication-Mapping the Limits of Online Discussions Forums”. The University of Adelaide. 2012.
Vitak, Jessica. “New Communication Technologies’ Impact on Young Adults.” Pew Internet & America Life Project, 2008.