Can You Hear Me Now?

DeVetta Williams
Nov 3 · 6 min read

From being restricted to car phones, pagers and beepers, and even pay phones, cell phones were so big and bulky nearly twenty years ago that no one really wanted them; until they were reinvented about a decade ago to allow them to fit in your purse or pocket. That’s when it all began. Communication was now accessible on the go and more and more people starting buying them. Leaving many landlines to be disconnected and primarily used for businesses.

If communication was so easily to access on the go now, why not include information? Cell phones could now receive and make calls/texts and access the internet. This took the feeling of being connected to people and businesses to a new level. There is less chances of missing calls or messages because everybody keeps their cell phones with them. Even if they may not respond right away, at some point they will check their phone and see the notification.

A lot of businesses use social media to contact their customers. I actually bought my last car through a sales rep that contacted me through social media. Kushlev and Proulx (2016) state,”Mobile computing has changed where people access information, and it has also changed what information people seek. Like previous information media — from newspapers to TV and radio — mobile phones are used to keep up to date with news and current affairs [4]. But more frequently than that, people use their mobile phones to access new types of information — from finding out about current social events to finding information about how to get there [4].” This new era of technology and social media has ruined the need for personal interactions in the eyes of some with a more traditional mindset. New technology has completely changed the way of life and made a lot of things easier to obtain such as meeting new people and dating.

From homophily to an internet and social media dependence and even various psychological concerns, there are several negative factors that can affect its users. The pressure to stay engaged in social media can cause other areas of a person’s life to weaken from overuse of access. Some social media sites such as Snap Chat have a popularity metric that is based on how many followers and interaction a user has and receives. This metric system gives the user a score to keep track of based off that information.

Invasion of Privacy

Several social media sites share their information about their users to other companies. These companies will take that information and distribute their marketing ads to help influence the users to buy their merchandise or shop with them. A lot of companies have begun this trend based on internet browsing history and algorithms. A couple months ago, I was shopping at a well-known store by using their app through my phone. As soon as I logged onto my Facebook account, I noticed that the items I saved in my favorites for that company were now being shown in ads in my news feed. My first thoughts were, “How did Facebook know?” A couple of days later, I ended up purchasing some of those items because I was seeing them everywhere. Seeing those items reminded me of why I saved them in my favorites; which made me want them even more. That reminder was a sense of pressure to buy those items.

That same pressure can be added into social groups, trends, and political views. All it takes is for a person to post something they may agree with, find funny, or entertaining. Depending on what the post is, it may cause the cyber bullies to form and force their opinions. People fear being their real selves because of what other people may think or say. Cyber bullies are just as bad as being bullied in person. I have seen so many people have drama that is aired out on social media networks instead of going to the person to solve problems like adults.

Sometimes cyber bullying may cause users to lose followers and friends. People can now customize what they see and who they follow by removing unwanted ads and unfollowing or unfriending certain people. This can also be seen as being anti-social. People pay attention to a user’s social media activity more than most people would think. Social media activity can tell a lot about a person. This is how some people get their houses robbed while they are away on vacation. How did the robbers know? The users posted their activity while away on vacation.

In Plain Sight

Being on social media can be tricky for its users. Some people share or over share. How does a person decide what is middle ground? Many will argue and say that if a user doesn’t share their life on social media, they may as well not even be on the site. I am more of a user that likes to remain “mysterious”. I don’t consider my activity as mysterious but others may base that perception on my lack of information and sharing. Many people will share every detail of their life from the time they wake up in the morning until they go to bed at night. Others only post highlights for their life and what they want to share. Certain users may only feel comfortable using social media sites as Snap Chat where their posts are automatically deleted after 24 hours; unlike other sites that the post will remain until the user deletes it. The main concept of social media is to remain your true self and stay within your comfortability levels.

References:

Kushlev, K., & Proulx, J. D. E. (2016). The social costs of ubiquitous information: Consuming information on mobile phones is associated with lower trust. PLoS One, 11(9) doi:http://dx.doi.org.library.capella.edu/10.1371/journal.pone.0162130

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