Jordan Jawdat
NMD 200
19 September, 2019
1.
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=174&v=YoowH0mIuiA)
“Is the internet changing the way we think.”
I found this video very interesting because it’s a question I’ve pondered from time to time myself. Is the internet changing how we think? The people at Inside Science sure think so, and It is undoubtedly replacing what parts of the brain we use. It has made us a little more distractible and has become an addictive pleasure. It is interesting to see how humans are slowly changing due to the effects and efficiency of technology.
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=13&v=bZn0IfOb61U)
“Gerd Leonhard, TED Talk”
In this TED Talk, Gerd Leonhard discusses Digital ethics and the future of humans in a connected world. I believe that computers must be programmed and since they are machines, they are not able to make free choices. They are only as smart as their programmers, and they “always” act according to their programming. There will never be a time that computers hold primacy over human beings, what a fantasy. Even though a calculator can calculate faster than human nature, it cannot make decisions like a human being. It is mere programming, and human beings are creatures of intellect and free will, created in the image of God.
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6R0fTRTIQCE)
“Depression and the Secret to Happiness | Johann Hari.”
In this video, Hari discusses an exciting take on depression that I can’t say that I completely agree with. That being said, what he’s saying is not wrong; I think that each case of depression is unique. He brings up a good point on the sickness that our society has been overrun with, but that alone shouldn’t bring you down. Of course, if someone’s main factor in their depression were society, I wouldn’t tell them that they’re wrong. It’s just that the world will only affect you as much as you let it. If you focus on the bad things that are always in motion, you’d have every right to feel down and upset. I would advise taking a more optimist approach to look at the world. I understand that if you tell yourself everything is alright, that might come off as a little ignorant of society’s problems and mishaps. However, being a pessimist doesn’t help anyone’s depression.
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PHzwMLx-rKc)
“PLUGGED IN: The True Toxicity of Social Media Revealed (Mental Health Documentary)”
While I applaud this for its insight and being so on point. I do find it a bit tiresome that the emphasis is always on the youth and people in their 20s and younger. When it comes to the entire issue of social media and the breakdown of communication, depression rates, etc. It’s all very well, but it’s already been done to death. What doesn’t get discussed enough is the destruction that social media is also wrecking on relationships and exacerbating narcissism among elders. And that’s not to mention even older ages. What of them and us? Where are the studies about what social media is doing to Gen-X and Baby Boomers? I have just in my own life and social sphere seen a tremendous breakdown in friendships and relationships and the quality of interaction (or not) with the advent of social media. Older people also have become narcissistic, much more self-absorbed and far more shallow generally. It’s depressing beyond belief. We need more discussion about these generations, please. The online world and all its mostly cynical machinations don’t begin and end with Millennials and Generation Z.
2. Question: Are Millennials the “only ones” who are going through these social media mental health problems? If not, then why does the media only target us and not the older generations?
3. Links to Resources about question:
What’s interesting to note is that it was somewhat difficult to find any articles addressing the social media use of elders. That being said, according to this article, over 36% of adults in this age range experience loneliness and or depression. Along with this, around 35% of individuals over 60 are on social media networks. Now while I understand that this number of elders experiencing loneliness and depression probably isn’t strictly from social media. The same problems that affect millennials also can be applied to elders. These problems can potentially affect all users of social media.
https://www.managedhealthcareexecutive.com/news/impact-social-media-mental-health
This article was, sadly a little brief. However, it did provide the right amount of information that people should be aware of. For example:
“Problematizing relatively mundane uses of information and communication technologies has contributed to a moral panic. The supposed cure—encouraging individuals to protect their well-being by limiting their Internet and social media use—may reduce a new protective influence on mental health,” Hampton tells Managed Healthcare Executive.
I fully expected this article to spit out a ton of statistics displaying how social media was bad for mental health. Instead, the article discussed how maybe social media isn’t as bad as the media makes it. I mean I wouldn’t necessarily be surprised if that were true. I mean the media is known for exasperating things to get people’s attention, that’s how these media outlets make their money. I think people should be aware of their social media use, but that doesn’t mean that we should be afraid of our use of social media on our phones. We should have the willpower to put down our phones and take a walk outside without feeling hesitant to glance at our phones. Sure this may be a difficult task for some individuals, but I cannot relate because I have this willpower and never really found any difficulty in doing so.
5. I noticed a couple of things while going through this research experience. I realized some things that I wasn’t “intended” to take away from the articles. It changed my thoughts on social media use. First off, I understand that my generation is the target audience for this social media addiction that these corporations are trying to implore. So media outlets feel the need to target us as well when writing articles about the adverse effects of social media. This tactic doesn’t necessarily work for me. However, I find it rather annoying that my generation and the younger generations are always targetted and often told that we’re doing something “wrong.” I mean if you were always compared to something and said that you were lesser or not good enough. I could see how one could have a self-image problem. But by making people feel like they’re doing something wrong, and group individuals into a population, it’s making as much of an impact as people think it is.
6. The social media platform I would redesign would have to be Snapchat. I would choose Snapchat because I feel like a lot of middle school to college students spend the majority of their time on the app. My redesign would include a customizable screen time limit that would go from an hour to about 3 hours a day. I decided on this design because I always hear Snapchat isn’t that bad of an addiction if you have discipline. Instead of hoping the user has this discipline, why not just make it mandatory, so you don’t need a specific set of “skills” to go about Snapchat healthily?
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