Cause and Effect : How technologies are affecting our social skills

Imagine,you're having lunch with a friend, when suddenly her phone rings, she reply “sorry, I thought I
turned it off” so as you're telling her the good news about your promotion, you notice she has her head
down and and she seems to be texting someone. At that moment you are upset, she has not listened to
any thing you have said. Have this ever happened to you?. Well each year more and more people are
using a form of technology to communicate, such as texting, internet, as well as social network sites,
like Facebook, Myspace and Twitter, instead of just communicating verbally with each other. It's sad
because, instead of a guy just asking a girl out, instead he gets her cell phone number and just text her,
or instead of going to a coffee shoppe or book store to meet someone, you check out the dating
websites to look for love.
Whatever you use technology for, one thing for is for certain is the over uses of technology, can
break down the way we physical communicate with one another, and may even turn us into a anti-
social society one day. According, to Radicati Group “210 billion emails are sent per day that on
average, 2.5 million emails are sent each second, (Radicati Group; March 21, 2009) also according to
www.intomobile.com over 1 trillion text messages were sent in 2008. These statistics are somewhat
disturbing, because it means, if technology progress, the need for human interacting will decreased, for
instance look at how we conduct our every day business activities, such as, shopping, banking and job
search we can shop online for almost anything, as for banking we can; check our accounts, transfers
funds, cancel a check, or even open account all in the comfort our own homes, job and credit cards
application are now available online as well as insurance, and college application. Years before
technology progressed, we had to go to a bank to opened up accounts, shop for our own food, and had
to order from a catalog, now with the advance technology things have really changed.

Years before the internet was invented, people relied on either mailman / persons, news on
television or just word of mouth to hear what was happening in the world, now sense the invention with
such technologies like telephones, internet, cell phones, and social network sites, we can keep track on
what's going on in our world. Although, some technologies seem to be effecting our live socially, lets
take a look at the positive side of technology. Technology, have helped shaped, as well as improved our
society in many ways such as discovering a cure for serious illnesses, such as Cancer, Heart disease,
Breast Cancer, and Parkinson it may also produce a cure for these illnesses one day.

Technology have also produced medical equipment such as x-rays machines, ultrasound
equipment, cat scan, and bionics with make prosthetic limps for people that have lost body parts in
either car accidents or by illnesses. The rise of technology, have also made it possible for men to travel
to space, discover new and exciting places, travel under the sea and have men walk on the moon.
Although, technologies has many a positive sides, there's also a negative side to it, it seem like the
negative may one day out weigh the positive, when it comes to technology, and how we interact

socially with each other. According to Internet world a website, “1,733,993,741 million people uses
internet worldwide,” computers are even taking place of televisions, thus; cutting into family time,
which is causing, a problem in how we use our social skills to identify with one another and more
people are spending their time online, instead of spending time with their love one
(www.internetworld.com; 2009) Young adults are also busy either texting, using Myspace, Tweeter,
Facebook., thus; families are spending less time with each other, and rise of technologies, is beginning
to effecting our communication skills also.

According to the Nicholls Worth website states” We have become flooded with technology so
much that we use it as a crutch for any stressful, nervous or embarrassing situations we don't want to
face. “We know as we type the message, that we're taking the easy way out, but who isn't these days?”
( www.thenichollsworth.com;2005) So to ask a important question “Is technologies effecting our social
skills?” and if so then what can we do about it? Everybody, use different forms of technologies
differently, some use it to communicate with far away love ones, while others may only use it for work,
when they have to, whatever you use it for let us not over use it to separate us from each other, but
instead use technology to bring us together socially. Thus; not become a anti-social society, they that
hides behind technology so they wont have to experience stressful, nervous or embarrassing situations
they don't always want to face. In this life, we will have to face difficult people, we may not want to,
but if we develop good social skills they will pay off the next time you have to discuss something with
your professor or co-worker.
The truth is technology have made it easier for many of us, however, the over use of
technology is controlling our lives. Let's not let technology hinder the development of our social skills,
but instead let's control how we use technology wisely. In closing, the Nicholls Worth website states
“fostering good social skills, in the long run, they'll be just as important as computer skills” So next
time you feel the need to text, while having a conversation with your best friend. Just remember before,
cell phones were invented people actually talked to each other, without technology getting in the way
of a good conversation.

weigh the positive, when it comes to how we interact with one another socially. According to Internet