Mohammad Hasan

Freshman Composition 

English 11000 

December 07, 2022

How social media and technology affect us

Technology is one thing that we use every day of our life. Technology makes our work faster and easier. It is intolerable to live in today’s world without technology or social media. Technology helps to save time and better communication and gives us knowledge about the world, and better learning techniques. Web technology is for the better however there is a dark side to technology that has been forming. Usually, people of all ages use technology from children to old people. Technology helps people but it also affects children and this world negatively.  Children are getting addicted to technology which is effective physically and mentally. For example, Children’s developing social skills, relationships, health, and overall ability to focus can all be harmed by technology.

Technology is everywhere and we can not escape it. It is involved in every part of our lives. Starting from the morning what we do till night we all are using technology. Technology has revolutionized the way we work, play, and live our lives, and it will continue to do so as long as humans advance in their abilities. Technology is getting better and better every day which is helping us so much. Some positive aspects of technology are helping us better communicate, Easier Access to Education, Improved transportation, Safer Management of Money, and a Medical system. There is much technology that we use in our daily life. (Neurotracker, July 2, 2021) Technology has made communication unbelievably fast and convenient. A long time ago when technology wasn’t invented for communication people used to use birds or letters to send messages. Which used to take more than a week to get the letter. But now technology has made it so easy to communicate that it takes only a few seconds to send a message from one country to another. Not only can they send messages, but they can also send pictures, money, and video calls to each other. This is helpful for those people who are staying alone outside of their country. You can get news from all over the country by using social media. You can create new things, meet new people, and learn new languages, styles, and subjects. People make money by using social media. People also use social media to do their shopping, which saves them time. People can also come across the same thing they’re looking for. Using your phone, you can start your own business. Technology helped us with better education as well. Back in the old days, people had to go to school to get an education and if it was outside of the country it was even impossible to get an education from outside of the country. But with technology, we can attend schools that are outside of our country. Nowadays many schools allow us to use technology to write notes. Which is helping us to save many trees. It is hard to find a book that we are looking for in the library or bookstore. By using the technology the worker can easily tell us if the book is available in the library or not. If not, they can order it online in five mins. Not only that but buying an e-book on the internet is even easier. Reading e-books can save trees which is helpful for the environment. When the lockdown started, the internet helped us so much to get education through laptops or phones. Without the technology, it was impossible to attend class during the lockdown.

While some forms of technology have had great effects on the world, however technology affects the world also. One of the biggest problems of using technology is mental health and physical health. Technology is affecting the environment. By using so much technology we are polluting the earth, and keeping people’s lives at risk. Using technology affects children especially. Children are getting addicted to social media and video games which is affecting them negatively. Social media helps us to make friends. But for many people, it works oppositely. For example, according to the researcher “A 2017 study in young adults aged 19–32 years found that people with higher social media use were more than three times as likely to feel socially isolated than those who did not use social media as often”. (Jon Johnson on February 25, 2020) This evidence shows that social media can make people isolated. Not only isolated social media can affect people physically, for example, through depression and anxiety. Throughout social media, we see many people with perfect bodies, skin, careers, life, etc. However, in real life nobody is perfect. People with body insecurities often feel even more insecure about their bodies after seeing pictures on social media. By using social media for a long time people get addicted to the phone. According to the research, evidence shows that “As of 2019 and 2020, the average daily social media usage of internet users worldwide amounted to 145 minutes per day, up from 142 minutes in the previous year.”(S. Dixon, Mar 21, 2022) This shows that as time goes people are using even more time. Using social media can affect a person negatively in many ways, for example, eyestrain. Blurred vision and dry eyes are two common symptoms of digital eye strain. Eye strain can cause pain in other parts of the body, including the head, neck, and shoulders. One of the biggest problems with using technology is social media. Teens can be negatively affected by social media use, which can cause them to become distracted, disrupt their sleep, and expose them to bullying, rumor spreading, unrealistic views of other people’s lives, and peer pressure. For example, another study states that “A 2019 study of more than 6,500 12- to 15-year-olds in the U.S. found that those who spent more than three hours a day using social media might be at heightened risk for mental health problems” (S. Dixon, Mar 21, 2022) This shows that people especially who are under age can get mental health problems by using technology. It is really common for underage children to commit suicide because of loneliness and depression. Using technology for a long time also can cause sleeping problems. According to the 214 study, that “Authors of a 2014 study found that this blue light is enough to disturb the body’s natural circadian rhythm. This disturbance could make it harder to fall asleep or lead to a person feeling less alert the next day.” (S. Dixon, Mar 21, 2022) This shows that using technology before bedtime can stimulate the brain because of the blue light. Many parents often stay on social media and give less time to their children which causes bad relationships between parents and children. 

In conclusion, technology has both positive and negative aspects. It is how we use technology that determines whether it is inherently good or bad. Technology benefits us in many ways, but it also has an impact on us. We should try to avoid using technology as much as possible. We should also look after the children in our immediate vicinity and teach them proper technology usage.

Sources: 

• Technology In Our Life Today And How It Has Changed

Aging In Place. “Technology in Our Life Today and How It Has Changed.” AgingInPlace.org, 10 June 2022, https://aginginplace.org/technology-in-our-life-today-and-how-it-has-changed/.

• Negative effects of technology: What to know

Johnson, Jon. “Negative Effects of Technology: Psychological, Social, and Health.” Medical News Today, MediLexicon International, 25 Feb. 2020, https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/negative-effects-of-technology.

• 25+ Positive & Negative Effects of Video Games, According to Science

Tumbokon, Ronaldo. “25+ Positive & Negative Effects of Video Games, According to Studies.” Raise Smart Kid, 28 May 2022, https://www.raisesmartkid.com/3-to-6-years-old/4-articles/34-the-good-and-bad-effects-of-video-games.