The article “Always-On/Always-On-You: The Tethered Self” by
Sherry Turkle in the Carolina reader reflects the idea of social change due to
the advancement of technology. Statis theory can be broken down into five
categories, facts, definitions, quality, policy and closure. The main message
of the article reflects the category of quality. Quality has to do with whether
the topic is good or bad and how serious the problem is and therefore, if the
problem has to be resolved. The main situation regards the advancement of
technology that has inspired a social change to how people interact and behave
in the presence of others. Technology has advanced so far that people are
always connected to the Internet and others via their phones or computers
(Turkle 137). This upmost connection at all times of the day even when outside
a person’s house, people can stay connected and interact with others whom they
are not directly with. This connection has inspired a change, for example,
previously it was rude to leave a conversation because it was seen as the
person was disinterested however, today it seems acceptable and often a “waste
of time” to be unconnected from emails or work (Turkle 140). This connection
has also created new ideas in terms of inspiring people to focus more on
necessary tasks during any moment. It allows people to be constantly connected
to work and other priorities throughout the day. However, this connection comes
with risks that could potentially outweigh the benefits; this is where the
category of policy of the statis theory comes into action. There is an inherent
risk that can cause people to lose social skills or personal interaction with
people in the real world. Some people may be so connected that they lose out on
opportunities for experiences. For example. Sherry Turkle mentions how students
whom study abroad may lose some of the experience because they are too busy
interacting with people back home via social media (Turkle 138). This poses an unique but serious problem because
people lose this experience that could be beneficial in future endeavors
throughout life. If people lose this sense or idea, it could cause a disastrous
effect limiting the youth and their experiences. This problem is all subjective
because it also introduces good social integration between people who can
experience multiple aspects of life via others. Therefore, it is a
controversial topic and depending on the article and author’s point of view on
the topic it can be beneficial or negative.
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