SOC 100 Week 5 Assignment Technology and Social Change
Technology and Social Change
Keith D. Howard
SOC/100
June 1, 2015
Instructor: Christa Raines
Technology and Social Change
Introduction
This report will examine how changes in technology are affected by society, in turn, how the society that produced this technology is impacted by this creation. The paper will specifically address the impact of personal computers, cell phones, and the internet on society, and how these technological advancements relate to the three major sociological perspectives; equilibrium model, digital divide, and cultural lag.
The excessive use of computers has drastically changed the lives of many users. As a multifaceted tool, the computer is used for tasks to include research, homework, business related activities, and even communicating with distant friends and family. Although computers can serve many useful purposes, they can become a reason for procrastination as well as cause people to retract from “real life” social activity. “As changes occur in technology, we must also contemplate the effect these changes will have on individuals. We must realize that individuals are vulnerable to the virtual world and that they can get lost,” (Computers and Their Impact, California State University Northridge, n.d.).
Personal computer and smartphone usage is also tied to how the Internet has impacted current sociological issues. As previously mentioned, the Internet is quite engaging, so some people tend to spend several hours browsing Web sites, blogging, Facebooking, Instagraming, etc. This causes users to disengage from organic reality and embrace virtual reality. We are becoming a socially inept society.
“The use of texting and Facebook and Twitter and other sites as a form of communication is eroding people’s ability to write sentences that communicate real meaning and inhibit the art of dialogue,” Saunders Medlock says. “It also allows people to communicate without ever seeing each other or hearing a voice, and this has a
Keith D. Howard
SOC/100
June 1, 2015
Instructor: Christa Raines
Technology and Social Change
Introduction
This report will examine how changes in technology are affected by society, in turn, how the society that produced this technology is impacted by this creation. The paper will specifically address the impact of personal computers, cell phones, and the internet on society, and how these technological advancements relate to the three major sociological perspectives; equilibrium model, digital divide, and cultural lag.
The excessive use of computers has drastically changed the lives of many users. As a multifaceted tool, the computer is used for tasks to include research, homework, business related activities, and even communicating with distant friends and family. Although computers can serve many useful purposes, they can become a reason for procrastination as well as cause people to retract from “real life” social activity. “As changes occur in technology, we must also contemplate the effect these changes will have on individuals. We must realize that individuals are vulnerable to the virtual world and that they can get lost,” (Computers and Their Impact, California State University Northridge, n.d.).
Personal computer and smartphone usage is also tied to how the Internet has impacted current sociological issues. As previously mentioned, the Internet is quite engaging, so some people tend to spend several hours browsing Web sites, blogging, Facebooking, Instagraming, etc. This causes users to disengage from organic reality and embrace virtual reality. We are becoming a socially inept society.
“The use of texting and Facebook and Twitter and other sites as a form of communication is eroding people’s ability to write sentences that communicate real meaning and inhibit the art of dialogue,” Saunders Medlock says. “It also allows people to communicate without ever seeing each other or hearing a voice, and this has a
References: California State University. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.csun.edu/~lic42878/computers.html Digital Divide. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://cs.stanford.edu/people/eroberts/cs201/projects/digital-divide/start.html Long, D. C. (n.d.). http://www.usfa.fema.gov/pdf/efop/efo45133.pdf. Retrieved from http://www.usfa.fema.gov/pdf/efop/efo45133.pdf National Telecommunications & Information Administration. (1998). Retrieved from http://www.ntia.doc.gov/report/1998/falling-through-net-ii-new-data-digital-divide Schaefer, R. (2015). Sociology: A Brief Introduction (11th ed.). Retrieved from The University of Phoenix eBook Collection database. South Source. (2015). Retrieved from http://source.southuniversity.edu/mobile-phones-and-society-how-being-constantly-connected-impacts-our-lives-137313.aspx