If we take a moment to think, we notice that today, with the technology of smartphones, social media, and apps, many of us no longer socialize like we used to. Nowadays, we have the smartphone as an excuse not to interact with a stranger in the elevator or an unknown patient waiting for the same doctor as us in the waiting room. The dependency on technological devices is becoming more apparent each day and can be considered a strategy of avoidance.
Generally, relationships are becoming increasingly virtual; face-to-face interactions are becoming rarer, and social interactions less frequent. It has become a habit for parents to hand over smartphones or tablets to their babies to keep them distracted while they tend to other tasks, which harms the crucial connection between parents and children. Diagnoses of all types of mental illnesses in children have been alarmingly increasing. Both children and parents are strongly attached to technology, disconnecting from each other. The damage to the quality of family life is profoundly noticeable. While on one hand, people feel closer and more connected through social networks, on the other, the lack of social contact, touch, and eye contact practically makes them more distant day by day.
More and more, children prefer to lock themselves in their room and play video games alone rather than gather with friends to talk or play. I am not against technology; on the contrary, I love it and use it every day. My concern is with excessive use. While most parents focus their worries on how their children are using technology, which websites they are visiting, and which chat rooms they are part of, they neglect to question why their children are using technological devices so much.
Technology is certainly not a bad thing. Its positive effects on young people are showcased daily, from the benefits of computers in schools to how tablets have helped children diagnosed with autism become more sociable. However, social skills, which come with the ability to handle one’s emotions, have been gradually impaired. People are increasingly finding it difficult to deal with conflicts face-to-face because they are becoming more accustomed to resolving everything through some type of technology. The rates of depression and suicide in the younger generations are alarmingly increasing. With the rise of technology, the trend of social isolation is likely to increase even more. It is crucial that we reflect on the world we want to leave for future generations. Humans, like animals, need to live in groups and interact. Mental and psychological health fundamentally depends on the quality of these interactions and social experiences.
Thais Clemente