Technology and Social Interactions

I believe over all the spread of technology and its sphere of influence has had an overall beneficial influence over our society.  With the growth of the internet and the social networks/ sites there is so much evidence for the benefits of technological advancement.  People have developed thousands of relationships with people they could have never met or keep in constant contact with in any previous era.  Albeit, most of these relationships are superficial and are only pertaining to specific topics or interests at hand, yet I still believe that we as a societal whole benefit from this. 

I do not see the all the superficial relationships we build on the internet as a negative or even something that inhibits normal face to face interactions.  I think for the average person who play virtual world games or have social networking accounts are able to balance their lives in reality and virtual worlds.  For some people, their extra-curricular activities include sports, music, and various person-to-person clubs.  So if these are socially acceptable norms for students and young adults, then I do not see why spending one’s free time in a virtual world cannot be just as a norm.  If that is what a person enjoys and is not harming anyone then let them relish in their passions.  Also, the people that spend most of their free time in virtual worlds may have been social outcasts and depressed individuals without an outlet for them to express themselves.  So without these expressions of their identity, we could have had a generation of young adults who did have any way to reach out to individuals with similar interests and would become lost as a result.  However, of course there has to be some moderation in all aspects of life.  No matter what hobby or activity one must exercise a little self-control.  So it probably is not smart for an individual to spend his entire time in a virtual world, thereby forgetting about real social interactions.  I will admit there are probably some people who lose themselves online and have a hard time interacting in a real life social setting.  Yet, these people are an extreme and a rarity. If you look at other extra-curricular activity you will always find the extremist of the activity who do not have any other social interactions outside it.  So avid virtual world users are not alone in their narrow passions, but they tend to be the one most picked on.

So of course it is not wise for someone to spend all their time online for that will not lead to a truly happy life (from a philosophical life) for we all need to exercise balance.  On the whole I generally see these online worlds as an advantageous social tool. There always those who abuse too much of a good thing and the power that comes with it.  These avid online users should no longer be considered outcasts, but instead the new normal.