Self-Control: Negative Effects Of Technology On Society

University of Balamand

Department of English

Engl203

“Self-Control”

Daniel Charafeddine Chehayeb

ID#: A1411062 Technology gives a person control over everything, except over technology. Every generation thinks that its successor will be a downgrade in terms of humanity, personality or intelligence, and that can be caused by the sins of the current one. Let’s recall the old days where physical activity was more abundant; family trips were taken every weekend, and visiting friends did not include the mere sight of a television accompanied by a joystick. Nowadays, advancements in technology have taken more control over our lives than ever. We spend much more time, in front of the screen, than ever before, regardless of the type of the

Thousands of people are connected to one another simultaneously varying from different time zones and diverse places on earth. With social media, one is capable of traveling the world when viewing images and videos though the mind is still in the same “placeless” place which means that the brain goes into that place while staring at the screen for too long, the mind enters a state where it stops thinking, hence the normal social behavior declines. Negative Effects of Technology… (2015) shows how the old fashioned café has eliminated loneliness through time by gathering people in one place, as opposed to sitting at a screen for too long that causes a social cut off. When linked to a person on social media you can love them for what they say or for their sense of humor however when it comes to physical contact, which is absent online, can you bare their real personality? It can be significantly different from what you thought it was. The altered personality can cause one to develop a fear of relationships in the future. Lickerman (2010) mentioned “…, but too much electronic-relating paradoxically engenders a sense of social isolation.” Over exposure to fake personalities, catfishing, and impersonators, the person is exposed to isolation since their society becomes a

In order for the future to be promising, children should be raised correctly on a good social and psychological behavior. In some ways technology is impacting and fracturing family’s relations and reducing important core values. Parents use technology to make their lives easier in raising children, Rowan (2013) explains:

A 2010 Kaiser Foundation study showed that elementary aged children use on average 7.5 hours per day of entertainment technology, 75 percent of these children have TV's in their bedrooms, and 50 percent of North American homes have the TV on all day. Gone is dining room table conversation, replaced by the "big screen" and take