With the rise of the Internet and the day-to-day technological advancements, social media has become a ‘basic’ need to many. Look around you and you will notice that a multitude of people is either on their phones or laptops. You would hope that a significant number of them were reading inspirational materials but on the contrary, a majority of them are logged onto their social media sites either updating statuses, chatting with friends, posting pictures or busy liking stuff.
Social media has greatly impacted the world at large both positively and negatively. For instance, it has made it cheaper for people to advertise their products and services and has helped promote brand awareness.
The above examples are just a tip of the iceberg in regards to the positive changes social media has brought about. What about the impact it has had on interpersonal relationships?
Changes in how people communicate
In the ‘dark’ days of no Internet, people traveled from one corner of the earth to the other to see each other. This has greatly changed in recent years.
Social media has made it easier for people to connect with their beloved. Especially instances where one is too busy with their day-to-day activities which may cause them to lack real communication with other people.
Social media communication comes in options such as screen-on-screen chatting and one-on-one talking. These have created a convenient medium where people can connect either privately or publicly; whichever they prefer. You will notice that once folks are used to the above communication, they will have a hard time having real face-to-face communication. They will rarely talk in person but will text or tweet them with ease.
Emotions are lost
Truth be told, social media has made people lose their personal touch. Taking an example of WhatsApp; don’t you just love those cute emoticons? The social media app has an emoji for every emotion.
Despite this, a text is still a text and the message will lack real emotions. There is also a possibility of the message being misinterpreted by the receiver.
The worst part about losing personal touch is that the sender will most likely send a laughing while they are wearing a serious face. Most people, especially teenagers and young adults, forgot what it is to have a meaningful conversation in person. What gives them joy is sitting behind screens typing away their thoughts.
Reveals an edited version of yourself
When you are chatting or messaging someone, you have all the time to write anything that you want to better yourself. This is the sole reason you will find people will meet on social media, plan a blind date and when they finally meet, chances of one or both parties not liking the other are high.
On the other hand, when people are communicating face to face, there is no time to look for the perfect thing to say. It is through oral communication that one can know the real you. Social media has brought about various misconceptions about people’s lifestyles. Celebrities will undergo unimaginable procedures in search of the ‘perfect’ body. The ‘flawless’ bodies and lifestyles they show on social media is enough to misguide some people into insecurity.
All in all, social media has its pros and cons. It is up to you as an individual to decide what you will take in.