During class on Thursday, we touched on an interesting topic: the “destruction of civil society” via technology and virtual networks. With the rise of the internet, our personal relationships have become virtual; we interact through E-mail and text messages, skype with distant relatives, and have online discussions through vehicles like blackboard and LiveMeeting. While the mediums under which we communicate may be changing from face to face interactions, to technologically enhanced interactions, personal relationships are still possible, and actually quite successful in the digital age.
Through my personal experiences as an inside sales representative in my previous career, I found that your product can only take you so far, and a large part of the selling cycle had to do with the personal relationship between the buyer and the seller. Even though I communicated with my clients largely through the phone and via E-mail, whether or not they liked me and our relationship together affected my sales success. The programs at our disposal (E-mail, social networking, blackberry’s and iphones) gave us more tools to communicate effectively and quickly with clients. We were plugged into the network at all times so we could respond to issues and challenges as they came up. These tools are not only used in the business world, but in society in general. They give us new and interesting ways to communicate, in addition to face to face communication. They are not intended to replace or destroy civil society, but to enhance it.
I used to agree 100% with this point of view. As someone in a long-distance relationship, I pretty much use Skype on a daily business. And I don't know where I'd be without email. But recently I started to change my mind about technology's influence on relationships. Last year I was a TA for a class of university freshmen. One day the 17 students in my class unanimously said they hate when their friends call them. Calling is "too invasive," they said. This didn't make much sense to me, since you can return someone's call at a later time just like you can a text message. But there was no convincing them. Now I hesitate to call my friends. Am I being annoying? Should I just text?
ReplyDeleteI think these virtual networks change the nature of our relationships. We can communicate with more people in less time, and the communication is all about convenience. We text 10 people while commuting on the Metro. Business emails are quick and easy, but they're not the same as taking clients to lunches or events. Reliance on technology can make communication a robotic effort.
I think when it comes to the closest personal relationships (whether friendships, family or romantic ones), there's no substitute for face to face interactions. That's not to say that you can't establish a connection with people through technologies, but for me at least, the missing physical element makes it so that emotional connections are harder to achieve. But of course, when you have no other choice, they're great and help maintain already established connections.
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand, these technologies also make me feel closer and more in contact with people that I would otherwise have no communication with. I think this creates a whole new category of relationship that is real, but just not on the same level as the previous ones.