It seems that it is nearly impossible to go anywhere today and not see someone playing with some form of technology. Whether it is a sixty-year-old woman fiddling on her new Iphone, or a seven-year-old texting on her new Blackberry, we are all hooked! While most people would argue that these new technologies provide convenient ways to get a hold of your young child or your aging mother, I wonder if perhaps we are too dependent on cell phones and other electronic gadgets. Are we, as a society, addicted?
Gadgets have wormed their way into every aspect of our lives. We not only use these high tech devices to call and text people, but we also use them to research things that we want to know the answer to right away. When we try to search something and it takes longer than 5 seconds, we get antsy, and complain that our device is taking too long. While my generation has seen the introduction of the Internet and high-tech cell phones, the problem is especially prevalent amongst the younger generations who have not experienced life without it. Young people today seem incapable of accomplishing anything without the help of technology. Now that cell phones function as mini computers, we have all the world’s information at our fingertips at an instant; in turn, we have all become “instant-aholics”.
Recently, I have been watching young kids at meals and in public settings to see how they interact with their surroundings. I have noticed that the majority of kids, seated at tables with their friends and families, rarely look up from their devices to make eye contact with anyone in their presence. Even walking down the street or hanging out with friends, most of their time is spent on their phones, texting or gaming. I recently saw a young woman on horseback, texting! While I think that this is diminishing their social skills (not to mention their equestrian abilities), I am also concerned with the fact that kids, immersed as they are in their various devices, are missing all the things that are happening right before their downcast eyes.
According to a study conducted at the University of Maryland by the International Center for Media and Public Affairs, it is challenging for many young people, and, for some, impossible, to go 24 hours without their cell phones and similar technologies. The study was conducted throughout the United States, Latin America, Africa, the Middle East, Europe, and Asia, and asked over 2,000 students to go “unplugged” for the day. The researchers found that the overwhelming number of students struggled with this task, and felt that they had a clear “addiction” to technology, calling it their “drug”. Students reported that, throughout their day without their technology, they felt bored, confused, stressed, and isolated. Many of the participants reported having “hostile” and “jealous” feelings towards people who they saw on cell phones, and felt as though they were experiencing “withdraw”.
A Chilean student stated, “I didn’t use my cell phone all night. It was a difficult day… a horrible day. After this, I CAN’T LIVE WITHOUT MEDIA! I need my social webs, my cell phone, my Mac, my mp3 always!” Is this the battle cry of the next generation, or a cry for help?
Based on the data that was gathered in this study, it is clear that our time spent with technology has gotten out of control, and is best understood as an addiction. If left unaddressed, the problem is bound to get worse. These students were in their late teens and early twenties. We must consider what will come of the next generation who are experiencing this addiction at a much younger and more vulnerable age. While technology has immense benefits, is it really worth the risk of creating an entire generation that is incapable of making eye contact with the person sitting across the table from them?
Hi, my name is … and I am an “instant-aholic.”
ReplyDeleteAs funny as it sounds, I sometimes feel like I am addicted to my cell-phone and computer. If I am not using one, I am thinking about using the other. It is almost second nature for me to just pull out my phone in class, sitting on the couch, at the gym, walking around campus, and when I wake up and go to bed just to check it. These gadgets have most definitely wormed their way into every aspect of our lives, and I cannot imagine my daily life without them. I am also a guilty member of the “instant gratification generation” where I need an answer almost immediately and if it takes longer than 5 seconds I get antsy, and complain that my device is taking too long. Most recently, I felt the effects of being an “instant-aholic” when I was detached from my cell phone as I left it at my apartment for the weekend by accident after having gone home. I felt so ansty and all I wanted to do was drive back to get my phone back in my hand. It is crazy to think that these gadgets that were invented to help make our lives easier have in some ways really complicated things. I can’t help but to wonder, what would life be like without text messaging, google, or facebook? Would our social life be less complicated? Would we do as well in many of our classes without the swift and ease of tons of information at our fingertips?
This posting is so interesting, well written and true! I must admit I felt very guilty while reading it. I recalled several timse, just today, that I walked to class while on my iPhone. I didn't look up and see where I was going, for all I know I could have ran into a poll. But that was the risk I was taking because with modern technology so much a part of our lives now a days, I do feel uneasy without it. It's sad to admit, but I feel as if our generation and those after us feel uneasy without their phones in hand. For example, I know we can all agree that there have been times when we feel uncomfortable and our way out is to play with our phones. Because of technology society is afraid of silence and alone time.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed the name you gave to technology addicts, "instant-aholics." This really made me think about how technology has sadly affected us in a negative way. Although not everyone falls under this category, but I think it's safe to say that a majority of our young generation feels entitled to everything. This is only natural because we get everything instantly, most of the time for free. We don't have to work for it. All we have to do is push the download button and wait a few seconds. This is very sad because due to all this, our work ethic as a generation is not so great. We are growing up in a world where society is "telling us" to do less work and receive more.
Technology does have its pluses, but at a cost. This post has definitely given me a wake up call to put my phone down once in a while and enjoy the roses... the real ones outside. Not the screen saver picture of one that came with my new phone.
To answer your question: yes.
ReplyDeleteWe are as a society are most certainly addicted to the instantaneity of technology in today's world. I am, 100 percent -- and you're right, they really have wormed their way into just about every part of our lives, even the most private and unwanted ones.
What can we do? Going unplugged, as you sort of suggest, is a very good idea. But it's, sadly, one that is simply unpractical for a lot of people who are addicted to technology. I know that I, for one, couldn't possibly go more than a few days without the use of a laptop or cell phone, unless the circumstances were incredibly dire.
Sure, there are positives that come from this tech-diction. For me, with Google always by my side, I'm able to research topics I don't immediately know with much more regularity. But there are so many negatives. So, so many.
Growing up, I never got the privilege of owning and using a cell phone until I needed to, essentially not until I got my driver's license. Today's generation, on the other hand, was practically born with some kind of smartphone in their hands (recent ultrasounds show that newborns practice texting with their thumbs while in the womb). But really, if I had a nickel every time I sat in a restaurant observing a table of adolescents, in absolute silence, all doing something on their phones. It's frightening, actually, to think that the we will be relying on these individuals to move society forward. But as anxious as I may be, I realize that this is unavoidable, barring some major global catastrophe that puts us all back in the stone age. I guess as we grow older, all we can do is try to keep up with the times, just like our parents are doing.
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