The New York Times
Nicolas Marin
Business student at Longwood University with a concentration in accounting and a minor in spanish.
Does Social Media really make you less social
When people think of social media users, the first thing that likely comes to mind is someone who is sharing everything about themselves. They also might imagine a person staring into their phones oblivious to the outside world. Millions of people use social media every day and there seems to be no end in sight for this cultural phenomenon. Social media has exploded from simple chat rooms to social media giants like Facebook, Redit, Instagram, Snapchat, Xbox live, and PlayStation network, these platforms are all considered social media because people use them on a daily basis to communicate and socialize with others. Would using a product to communicate with others socially really make someone less social? Yes, everything really depends on how the social media platform is used. If a person does not communicate outside of their device and spend all day in solitude I would say they are less social because of social media. From another perspective, you could see how social media platforms could actually strengthen communication. From my experiences I view both of these scenarios on Facebook and Xbox live the most since I use these social media platforms more than any other platform. In my opinion I say that social media can actually strengthen communication skills when used correctly.
Facebook is the largest social media platform on the planet and services billions of people around the globe. People use it to keep track of friends, family, coworkers at any time of the day. This is very beneficial for when individuals are away from their families and looking at their posts can help start conversations when they meet. In this examples looking at social media can help create conversation with individuals in which case would make them more social to others. On the other hand, if you are at a social event and you’re constantly looking at your phone or on a social media site it is impolite and you are not engaging with others socially. There is a reason it’s called social media and not anti-social media, it was created to help individuals reach more people and keep in touch with friends. This is the precise reason that Facebook was created, to help people become more social. Although it was created for this reason, there will always be someone that takes it too far. It’s easier to notice the thousands that are addicted and misuse social media than it is to see the millions that use social media the way it was meant to be used.
Another platform that can falls under the umbrella term social media, is Xbox live. It’s not normally discussed about as a social media platform even though that’s exactly what it is. It is a common misconception that gamers are loners and antisocial, but they make up a small minority of the gamer community. The people I interact with on Xbox live are very social, many of them are mature adults with a life offline. Gamers have created many communities on the platform that millions interact with daily. To say that the gaming aspect of social media makes people less social is simply incorrect, in fact I would say it does the opposite. People gain communications skill while interacting online with people. For example, on Halo, people have created small groups and communities within the game to add more gameplay to it. These communities have very dynamic social hierarchies, these groups vary widely from serious groups to more relaxed groups, and these groups are all over the Xbox live platform. These social groups are proof that people can use social media correctly, to increase social skills and not hinder them. Just like on Facebook, gaming can be addictive and abused. Everything needs to be taken in moderation or anything can become addictive.
Moderation is the key when using anything in today’s culture. In my opinion I think social media can strengthen and improve upon somebody’s social skills. Social media is a very useful tool that many people use to keep track of friends and family. The problem though is people misusing the service and burrowing themselves into social media without applying the social skill to real life, but in the end social media helps more than it hinders. Just like an invention, if you have an idea but don’t apply it you won’t get very far. The same applies to social media, if you don’t apply the social skill that can be learned on social media platforms then it’s not going to help you, and you’ll fall under the stereotype that social media makes people less social.