“We like technology because we don’t have to talk to anybody.”-Howard Rheneingold

This quote actually surprised me because I believe the exact opposite. We like technology because we are able to talk to anybody behind a screen. Many people in the world are frightened to talk to other people about anything. This is why if we do not have the confidence to talk to people in reality, technology assists those who feel pressured.

However, this strikes as a huge problem. Although this may help some people, usually teenagers, slowly become more social in reality, others continually take advantage of this opportunity and never experience a social life away from a screen.These people become more anti social and then technology becomes their native tongue because they are online for about six hours a day.

Also, when people spend so many hours on the internet, they start to trust everything on the internet. For example, if they believe something is wrong in their bodies, they search it up instead of going to a doctor and believe that they are suffering from random diseases when they really aren’t. This ideology is called cyberchondria. Although the internet can help people feel connected to the world, the connection to the technology may instead negatively affect a person.

Question: Is using technology the best solution for those who experience loneliness or social anxiety? If not, what are other solutions that can instead benefit such people?