We Expect More From Technology And Less From Each Other - Essay Sample

Sherry Turkle is a Social Studies professor of Technology who has written about the impact that technology has on human communication and relationships. The different forms of technology have made a revolution in the manner in which people interact with each other whether in business, in education or even in ones life. I agree with Turkles argument that we expect more from technology and less from each other (Turkle).

People have reduced the level of social interaction. According to Turkle people have started filtering companionship through use of machines which can result in a robotic moment and hence people will turn towards the machines seeking for a companion. The new technological devices are taking over the place of human beings. For example, we now have talking toys which are used to keep a child busy rather than having a human being entertaining and talking to the child. This results in the child having anti-social behaviors from a tender age. Children are being addicted to watching since post parents for example switch on their TVs for the child to watch different cartoon channels. This has made children to have more anti-social behaviors and lack the interest to interact with other children as they find it more entertaining while watching. Parents fail to give their children the necessary attention since most of them are on their phones and hence children have to compete with the mobile phones. This results in the child getting detached from their parents (Turkle and Potter).

The technological advancement has resulted in people not having the desire to interact face to face. Most young people are communicating more through the social media such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Snap chat. Nowadays while people are together they not recognize that they should be interacting with each other due to the distraction that they have resulting in more concentration for example being on their phones or laptops. An American teenager spends several hours each day on Facebook, Myspace and Instant Messenger. The teenagers send thousands of text messages each month while chatting with other people across the world and hence they do not have time to interact with their peers physically or even time to have a face to face conversation. This justifies Turkles statement that we expect more from technology and less from each other (Turkle).

People have been using the different types of technology while in problems to seek for information rather than consulting their fellow human beings. The use of Google has greatly led to people not asking for advice from other human beings but instead, they Google which is at times misleading. For example, some people when they are sick they do not see the need to visit a doctor but instead, they Google the symptoms that could be causing the problem and the possible drugs that they could take. This poses a major risk on their health. This has been caused by the fact that technology has taken over the position of a doctor.

According to Turkle, the various types of technology that people use to communicate have resulted in the ability to control the contact that they have with others. People do not care about the privacy of others anymore. Most people using the new forms of technology want everything recorded in real-time and posted in their different social media sites. For example, the social media sites are being used by most of the young people to advertise themselves and reveal to the world about their popularity rather than using them in the development of relationships that can be considered to be meaningful.

The new technology is undermining the possibility of people having a conversation that counts. For example, a person becomes easily demotivated to having a conversation with another person when there is no direct eye contact since it reduces the level of connection that the participants feel towards each other and as well as reduce the quality of the conversation. The lack of concentration during conversations results in misunderstanding which has led to most marriage breakups and ruining of relationships. The use of technology had affected peoples level of professionalism. For example, people have been fired from their jobs since they do not cater for the needs of the clients who come physically to the organization seeking for help but rather they concentrate more on what is happening on the online platforms. Due to the excessive use of technology most individuals have lacked the right skills to handle others and communicate to them using the correct language. In the office, there is lack of understanding between colleagues and sense of engagement since there is no direct interaction with each as people email and text each other in case of any problem (Lawson and Percival) .

In conclusion, Turkle was right to argue that we expect more from technology and less from each other since the new wave of technological advancement has resulted in people lacking the interest to interact with each other physically. Most conversations today are easily distracted since people are looking at their phones and not the person they are talking to. People should look for solutions to the problems that have been posed by the new technology to improve social interaction with each successfully.

Works Cited

Lawson, Denis, and Daniel Percival. Virtual Friends: [the Effect of Technology on Communication]. All to Wall Television Ltd.

Turkle, Sherry. Alone Together: Why We Expect More from Technology and Less from Each Other. Basic Books, 2012.

Turkle, Sherry, and Kirsten Potter. Reclaiming Conversation. 2015.