Written by Sifan, 2021 Cohort
This week, we discussed how to write wittily for social media in our bootcamp. It made me reconsider a question that has bothered me for a long time, which is what role social media plays in our real life? Is it really helpful?
Internet is taking us to places we don’t want to go
Actually, I’m not addicted to social media. Posting personal things a lot on social media is not my style. I’ve heard someone say that the Internet is taking us to places we don’t want to go. Although the Internet age provides more and more social channels for people, interrelationships seem to be more and more alienating. We are more reluctant to be close to people and invite them to our homes.
Virtual social networking is making us more lonely
A series of studies on social networks show that virtual social networking cannot really expand your communication circle. On the contrary, the more you use social networking, the more lonely you may feel.
In 1998, Rober Kraut’s study found that in the first 1-2 years when people first used the Internet, the sense of happiness and social connection showed a continuous decline. Among them, the use of the Internet has the greatest impact on people’s family relations, and their contact and communication with their families has reduced significantly. In addition, together with shrinking social circles, depression and loneliness will increase. Some people have studied and analyzed the relationship between using social networks and personality types. The results show that compared with those who do not use Facebook, people who use Facebook have a higher overall narcissistic tendency and/or stronger social loneliness.
In fact, the wrong thing is not social media. Whether online or offline, we should find ways to improve the quality of communication – have more meaningful conversations, make closer friends. What really matters is not what tools you use to make friends, but whether it expands the world of your “real” offline contacts. Less effective social interaction can be solved by building your network with sincerity. I believe loneliness can be countered this way.