Tuesday, November 23, 2010
Does Social Networking Cause Antisocial Behavior?
In his New York Times article, "Antisocial Networking", (http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/02/fashion/02BEST.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1), author Hilary Stout addresses concerns about teenagers' constant use of electronics and the impact on their social behavior. The most shocking part of the article to me was the fact that "Americans between the ages of 8 and 18 spend on average 7 1/2 hours a day using some sort of electronic device, from smart phones to MP3 players to computers." Kids, mine included, would rather use their cellphones to text a friend rather than just call them to talk. One mother in the article actually texts her kids from her bed to tell them to get off the computer. The author brings up the point that this plugged-in behavior is affecting the ability of kids to read facial expressions, voice intonations and body language. I think that to some extent, this behavior is "impersonalizing" society -- that people will not know how to behave in face-to-face interactions because they are so used to having an electronic device between them. Any thoughts?
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You have brought to light a very interesting topic. I was so intrigued by it that I asked my daughter and husband about their thoughts on it. My husband tells me that he has read articles that state statistics that since the internet has grown in popularity that marriages have decreased and there has been an increase in certain crimes such as rape, violence and robbery. My daughter also noted statistics that she had seen that children are losing the ability to imagine in 3D which will limit their ability to perform spatial reasoning. This is thought to also affect their ability to progress into such fields as engineering.
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing this article review - you have given everyone in my family something to think and talk about.