The Impact Of Technology On Communication

There is no doubt that technology has had an impact on the day-to-day lives of the majority of the population. Technology exists to create efficiency and convenience, to connect the individual to the rest of the world and to advance education in a society that is constantly reforming. This essay will focus on the advancements of technology and the consequences it has on friendships and relationships. My view is that technology has been beneficial to improving communication between individuals, although I will be discussing both arguments in this essay.

It is increasingly clear that technology has changed the way we communicate in a variety of areas. An example of this is by people deciding to communicate with friends and family via social

Technology has integrated human expression and interaction into ‘apps’ such as Snapchat and Skype, forming a new hybrid method of communication that merges face-to-face companionship with technology. This advancement in technology has both positive and negative consequences on the way individuals communicate with each other. As Leah Lievrouw claims in “Media and Cultural Studies,” new media is “fundamentally interactive” providing the users with an “unprecedented degree of selectivity and reach in their choices of information and cultural resources, and their personal interactions and expressions” (2012, 476). This new advancement has implications on the way in which individuals form friendships, with new technological infrastructures forming that do not carry the traditional demands of a face-to-face

The ability to remove yourself from the reality of your surroundings, be it at a funeral, in a meeting or having breakfast, and transport yourself into the virtual world of your mobile device is becoming increasingly popular. This is significant as it influences key psychological areas such as self-reflection and your ability to learn about yourself, as humans use physical communication with others as a means to understand how to communicate with themselves. However, there are positives on the way we communicate as a result of technological advancements; texting, emailing, messaging all enable the individual to present the ideal self. This is a result of being able to edit, reform and sometimes delete what we are communicating before it has been communicated with others. When compared with traditional conversation, this form of communication allows greater control over companionship and