Position Paper 4

 The Impact of Social Media on Interpersonal Communication

The increase in social media platforms in recent years has essentially transformed the way we communicate with one another. In today's digital age, we can easily connect with people from all around the world, share our thoughts and experiences, and build relationships online. People are using social media apps such as Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok and BeReal hours after hours each day and tend to forget that they have around them. All of a sudden we can connect with so many more people, from many different locations in the world, and everything goes so fast. While social media has without a doubt made communication more convenient and accessible, it has also had a profound impact on the nature and quality of interpersonal communication. This essay will examine the effects of social media on interpersonal communication and explore the implications of these changes for our relationships and society as a whole. 

To start off, social media has altered the way we express ourselves and present our identities to others. By creating several online profiles and sharing content on our social media platforms, individuals can carefully curate their online persona and project a particular image to their followers. However, this can also lead to a disconnect between our online and offline selves, as we may present a more idealized or filtered version of ourselves online. Most of the time people are more likely to be sharing the happy moments of their lives, making their lives seem picture-perfect even though they might not be. This can impact our ability to form authentic connections with others, as we may be more concerned with projecting a certain image than with being our true selves. 

Secondly, social media has made communication more asynchronous and less personal. While social media allows us to communicate quickly and easily with others, it can also lead to a sense of detachment and disengagement in our interactions. Online communication often lacks the nonverbal cues and social context that are present in face-to-face conversations, which can make it harder to understand the emotions and intentions of others. Furthermore, the prevalence of "ghosting" and other forms of online avoidance can create a sense of uncertainty and mistrust in our online relationships. 

Third of all, social media has expanded the reach of our interpersonal connections and allowed us to connect with people we may never have met otherwise. This has created new opportunities for building relationships and exploring different perspectives, but it has also made it easier to form a shallow or transactional connections with others. The ease of online communication can also lead to a sense of overconnectedness, as we may feel pressure to maintain relationships with a large number of online contacts even if we do not have strong bonds with them. It can also be dangerous to connect with people we have never met in the real world since there are many individuals out there pretending to be someone who they are not. 

Social media platforms are also risking our social skills to decrease. For example, if we spend too much time communicating through screens, we may lose some of the social skills we need to navigate face-to-face interactions. This may have negative consequences for our ability to form deep and meaningful relationships. Being locked to your social media accounts many hours each day might make you feel more interested in what is going on in your social media world, rather than look around at what you have around you. Instead of communicating with people in the real world, people tend to feel more interested in what their social media friends and followers are up to. Social media use may also have an impact on our ability to communicate effectively in different contexts. While social media allows us to connect with a wide range of people, it can also lead to the development of communication habits that may not be effective in other settings, such as the workplace or in face-to-face conversations. There are a lot of emojis, slang, and shortened words used in the use of today's social media which won't work to use in the real world. 

Social media can also affect our self-esteem and sense of self-worth. Excessive social media use can lead to feelings of anxiety, depression, and social isolation. This can be especially true for young people who are still developing their sense of self and may be more susceptible to the pressure of social media. Constantly seeing others posting about how good their lives are might cause a wrong sense of reality in younger individuals' minds which can cause feelings of themselves not being good enough since their life does not look like others. Mostly people are deciding to only show their followers the positive happenings in life, and not the bad ones, which can cause a wrong picture of how life actually is. 

Another point that I think is important to bring up is the impact of social media on our privacy. Social media has had a significant impact on our privacy and the ways in which we share personal information with others. As we share more of our personal lives online, we may be exposing ourselves to potential risks, such as identity theft, cyberbullying, and online harassment. Additionally, social media platforms may collect and share our personal data without our knowledge or consent, which raises concerns about the use of this information by advertisers and other third parties. 

Overall, the impact of social media on interpersonal communication is complex and multifaceted. While social media has undoubtedly made communication more convenient and accessible, it has also changed the nature and quality of our interactions with others. As we continue to navigate the digital landscape, it is important to consider the implications of these changes for our relationships and society as a whole. By being mindful of the ways in which social media can impact our communication and relationships, we can work to build stronger and more meaningful connections with others online and offline.