Technology and Social Interaction

Although it is clear that the technological advancements, that continually seem to be taking place, are extremely beneficial to society as a whole, there is definitely a negative impact on some aspects of a person’s overall social interaction.  From my perspective, I know that I am probably not participating in as many face-to-face conversations as I probably should be; however, in terms of my online gaming experiences, I believe that the current technology has actually made a positive impact.  When it comes to gaming, the new technological advancements have been helpful because it brings together complete strangers, who happen to possess like interests, into a venue that allows similar skill levels to face off against each other.  In addition, I personally find it fun (from time to time) to play a challenging game against a complete stranger, because it generally provides me with an opportunity to challenge my abilities in a new, and often unique, way.  In addition, I find the gaming connection to be a good way to keep in touch with many of my high school friends by signing on to my Xbox live and playing a wide variety of games with them.  Now, even though there are many benefits to online interactions, I feel that I should admit that, for the most part, I believe that online social interactions are definitely negatively impacting the more formal face-to-face interactions that used to exist.  Even though many people benefit from online interactions such as dating web sites, Craigslist, message boards, etc., there are also many people who can provide the world with horror stories about their utilization of these types of sites.  From a business and social standpoint, however, there are a number of individuals who have benefited from the existence of these types of sites; because, not only have these companies created jobs for many people while also adding a vast amount of wealth to Silicon Valley, but they have also improved the ability to connection with individuals who may not be living in your particular area.  What people need to remember, when utilizing these sites, however, is that they should remain cautious at all times.  As with Facebook, and other social media sites, it is important to be careful about not sharing too much personal information.   In addition, since it appears as though many people try to hide their real identity, by creating an alternative person, those individuals who decide to use these types of sites should do so under the assumption that they may not actually be chatting with the person that they think they are.