technology and introversion/extroversion

[Gaze]

So, it's been a long standing discussion how much technology has affected our communication. But is it hurting our verbal or face to face communication in the long run? Are we dooming ourselves or hurting our relationships with people and the world by depending too much on technology for daily communication? Or is this too extreme a position to take? How has technology helped our communication? How has it hurt our communication?

 

[Paladin-X]

I work in IT, but I still think technology is ruining communication. I do not have a facebook or twitter account. Not on principle or anything. I just prefer to talk to people face to face. I don't deny that for some, it has helped bring people together, but on the whole I think technology is hurting communication. If at the very least, by butchering language into a new 'acronymic' one (there goes another butchered word). Though perhaps it is the many years that I've worked in IT that nurtured my disdain for the abuse of acronyms.

NOTE: I realize that though I take an anti-online communication stance, I spend a lot of time chatting here on the forum. Sue me.

 

[toska]

I just took a developmental psychology class and we talked about this. I guess this is obvious, but the professor said that babies need to participate in and observe face to face communication in order to learn how to read emotions and develop social skills. Lack of social skills and inability to read others' emotions obviously leads to feelings of isolation and disconnectedness, which then can lead to depression. But the internet definitely has positive benefits for adults in terms of sharing and learning about new ideas and being aware of what's going on in the rest of the world.

 

[Paladin-X]

I just took a developmental psychology class and we talked about this. I guess this is obvious, but the professor said that babies need to participate in and observe face to face communication in order to learn how to read emotions and develop social skills. Lack of social skills and inability to read others' emotions obviously leads to feelings of isolation and disconnectedness, which then can lead to depression. But the internet definitely has positive benefits for adults in terms of sharing and learning about new ideas and being aware of what's going on in the rest of the world.

Maybe we should make the Internet -- Rated R? At least half of it technically is anyway.

 

[Gaze]

I just took a developmental psychology class and we talked about this. I guess this is obvious, but the professor said that babies need to participate in and observe face to face communication in order to learn how to read emotions and develop social skills. Lack of social skills and inability to read others' emotions obviously leads to feelings of isolation and disconnectedness, which then can lead to depression. But the internet definitely has positive benefits for adults in terms of sharing and learning about new ideas and being aware of what's going on in the rest of the world.

This is an interesting point. The topic came to mind when I think of how many teens today suffer from isolation and depression, and how introversion is too often linked to antisocial behavior and isolation. Too often, social alienation or segregating ourselves into social cliques of people just like us has the tendency to make us unaware of how others are feeling or thinking and may explain why misunderstandings and miscommunication often arises because we isolate ourselves online or in different social networking activities which can make it easier to assume, miscommunicate, and severely misunderstand each other, creating more social discomfort, alienation, and more critical or negative communication towards people who do not see the world or understand it the way we do. It seems most social networking sites although they claim to bring many people together, fosters more superficial and distant communication not based on real, personal, much less lasting communication. How can you read emotional responses and understand people if we spend much of our time with limited face to face interaction pretty much avoiding each other on a real communication level? Much of the face to face interaction seems so superficial. It's so light and distant. It's meant to keep people away and not get too close. So, how can we truly understand people if we're always keeping them at arm's length?

 

[sassafras]

Yeah, I think technology really fucks people up on a lot of levels, not just social ones. Look at all the funky stuff it does with our pre-frontal cortex and executive functions:

• it lowers our inhibitions and desensitizes us
• lowers our ability to delay gratification
• interferes with our impulse control
• shrinks the capacity of our working memory
• wrecks havoc on our attention span
• prolonged hours in front a screen directly contribute to adrenal fatigue
• prolonged usage is also directly linked to states of apathy and inertia, wherein the subject's brain make up begins to correlate with that of a patient showcasing negative symptoms of schizophrenia (hallucinations and psycho-disturbances are considered positive symptoms).

And that's just on a personal level. The fact that it eliminates the need to leave our house and eats up a lot of our time that cuts into our levels of mobility and social interaction fucks us up even further. We live in our heads a lot more and we're not paying attention to what's going on with the world at large because we're busy introspecting and gaping at stupid cat gifs.

 

[toska]

Much of the face to face interaction seems so superficial. It's so light and distant. It's meant to keep people away and not get too close. So, how can we truly understand people if we're always keeping them at arm's length?

I think there are certain personalities that just aren't going to understand each other no matter how hard they try, so that's where the superficial face to face interaction is necessary in order to avoid drama. At least I use it for that purpose, like at work for example when I need people to get something done for me. But the face to face interaction at least gives you the opportunity to get closer to the people who will understand you.

 

[Gaze]

Yeah, I think technology really fucks people up on a lot of levels, not just social ones. Look at all the funky stuff it does with our pre-frontal cortex and executive functions:

• it lowers our inhibitions and desensitizes us
• lowers our ability to delay gratification
• interferes with our impulse control
• shrinks the capacity of our working memory
• wrecks havoc on our attention span
• prolonged hours in front a screen directly contribute to adrenal fatigue
• prolonged usage is also directly linked to states of apathy and inertia, wherein the subject's brain make up begins to correlate with that of a patient showcasing negative symptoms of schizophrenia (hallucinations and psycho-disturbances are considered positive symptoms).

And that's just on a personal level. The fact that it eliminates the need to leave our house and eats up a lot of our time that cuts into our levels of mobility and social interaction fucks us up even further. We live in our heads a lot more and we're not paying attention to what's going on with the world at large because we're busy introspecting and gaping at stupid cat gifs.

Yeah, it does make us not think before we speak or write. It lowers our self-censorship. We feel "free" to say almost anything without considering consequences. And anonymity online is too often linked with unhealthy social withdrawal which is seen as a form of extreme introversion. The more time you spend online the less you have to say to someone in person, so it encourages on some level less need for face to face communication since people feel "updated" via FB or twitter on everything that's happening. So, they don't feel the need to follow up by talking by phone or in person. And even phone communication has changed. I've noticed that people don't really have real conversations anymore, it's just a means of informing or self expressing. There's not much consideration or thought of what the other person has to say and why they think the way they do. People speak more than they listen. Or people assume they have someone figured out, so that they don't make the effort to learn more about someone.

 

[toska]

Maybe we should make the Internet -- Rated R? At least half of it technically is anyway.

It's worse than R Rated. More like crazy shit nobody should see o_0

 

[Majesty]

As long you're balanced and aren't addicted to cellphone/internet/whatever its absolutely fine.

HOWEVER there's nothing more annoying in this world than being with someone who just keeps texting when you're trying to talk to him/her. Those people deserve to drown in their phones.

 

[Gaze]

I think there are certain personalities that just aren't going to understand each other no matter how hard they try, so that's where the superficial face to face interaction is necessary in order to avoid drama. At least I use it for that purpose, like at work for example when I need people to get something done for me. But the face to face interaction at least gives you the opportunity to get closer to the people who will understand you.

I've just noticed a general pattern of people using superficial communication more, even in cases where it isn't necessary. There's just a general tendency to avoid having any significant communication with anyone that's not in someone's immediate social circle in any real way. Instead, there's a habit of wanting others to be mirror reflections of how they feel or think, and for others to be less interested or not very engaged or responsive if they don't share the same views or feelings. There's just a general sense of people not wanting to get involved to avoid personal communication which contradict how they feel or think. There's also a sense of "I already have people figured out, so I don't need to get to know anyone."

 

[toska]

Yeah, I think technology really fucks people up on a lot of levels, not just social ones. Look at all the funky stuff it does with our pre-frontal cortex and executive functions:

• it lowers our inhibitions and desensitizes us
• lowers our ability to delay gratification
• interferes with our impulse control
• shrinks the capacity of our working memory
• wrecks havoc on our attention span
• prolonged hours in front a screen directly contribute to adrenal fatigue
• prolonged usage is also directly linked to states of apathy and inertia, wherein the subject's brain make up begins to correlate with that of a patient showcasing negative symptoms of schizophrenia (hallucinations and psycho-disturbances are considered positive symptoms).

And that's just on a personal level. The fact that it eliminates the need to leave our house and eats up a lot of our time that cuts into our levels of mobility and social interaction fucks us up even further. We live in our heads a lot more and we're not paying attention to what's going on with the world at large because we're busy introspecting and gaping at stupid cat gifs.

My parents let my brother spend literally every moment of his free time playing video games and surfing the internet. He did graduate with a degree in engineering, but it's been 3 years now and he does not work and rarely ever leaves the house. Once in a while he goes to the grocery store with my mom or takes his cat to the vet.

 

[ThomasJ79]

Oh, technology, how I love thee and despise thee! Although I'm part of the "computer generation," the only access I had to computers growing up was at school. I can remember a largely computer free childhood. However, hen I was in the second grade my godmother spoiled me and bought me an NES, which I played nearly incessantly until I got the SNES, and eventually the Nintendo 64. I don't know how many hours I lost to playing the Legend of Zelda series, but it was certainly considerable. I often wonder if I could've mastered a second language or a musical instrument with those hours spent, or maybe just spent more time not doing anything but enjoying my childhood. I guess I was rather lucky too, in a way. I spent a lot of time with my friends riding bikes around the neighborhood, playing baseball, building tree forts in the woods, boy scouts, and camping. I have fear that my kids won't be as interested in that as I was because there are so many electronic gadgets that are out there today that society says everyone needs: laptops, cell phones, ipods, and the like. I know it makes life easier, but people don't have enough time in a day to devote to friends, family, and their gadgets. So, I do little things that help me cope with all the expectations that technology has sprung upon us all. I turn my cell phone off for most of the day, and only check it periodically. I only check my email twice a week. I don't have Facebook anymore. I make sure my phone is off when I have company over. I go for walks to soak up the outdoors. I teach my kids all about nature and how to appreciate it. I keep tabs on only a very few close friends and immediate family members, but those relationships are deep and that is how I love them. We'll get together for meals and cheer as often as we can. Lately I've been on the internet a lot and I'm trying to work on that, but my work hours can make me feel lonely sometimes and it's nice to interact with the world from time to time. I'm trying to reduce my internet time with more time reading. New Years resolution?

 

[Vict]

Everyone and their mother wants to spend less time on the internet. The more someone talks about doing it, the less likely it is to get done.

 

[Gaze]

I don't really think the solution is to despise technology but just to be aware of the effects of too much dependence technology and possible unintended consequences of overuse. I like interacting online with people and feeling as if it's possible to connect with people millions of miles away but it's also very easy to forget that some of these "connections" aren't real, but imagined, just virtual. Although I've learned quite a bit especially on this site about different types of people and it has enriched my understanding of many different personalities, I also know that many of these associations are temporary and rarely based on real investment in the long term. So, reality kicks in and I realize I shouldn't be dependent on social networking sites for developing long term relationships. Online communication can be a crutch, making it too easy to live inside one's head and not get to know real people in everyday life because we've set up some idealistic universe on a social forum where you can present an image or face which his more desirable but not really you. So, technology tends to either encourage showing the best or the worst of us or allow us to show our true colors or to pretend. It also has the tendency to create a more pleasing personality or the opposite of who we are, leading people to think that because they've seen a certain side of you presented in an online persona, that they "know" you when really they've only seen just one side.