It has become one of those "kids these days" statements; technology is killing our relational and face-to-face social skills. It is true, smart phones, tablets, laptops, they are all the main way we keep in touch with most of the people we know as well as the rest of the world.
Honestly, I have reflected on what things were like before all this tech. I grew up before cell phones took off and spent most of my free time on ten acres, responsible for taking care of various livestock and winged creatures and driving tractors around.
When I have thought about what things used to be like, I've imagined people interacting, engaging in long discussions and smiling at and waving to everyone they came across. This Christmas, I noticed something that gave some insight into this curiosity. I watched "Planes, Trains and Automobiles" with Steve Martin and John Candy (in my opinion, it's a much better version of "Due Date" although I do appreciate the acting skill of Robert Downey, Jr. and Zach Galifainakis).
In the movie, there was an establishing scene in an airport when the camera panned across the boarding area. I noticed almost everyone was staring at a newspaper, a book or a magazine and almost no one was talking to anyone. At the moment I saw this scene it hit me that the technology is not to blame. People are. We can choose to take the headphones out of our ears, set the phone down, close the clamshell, iPad case, and say hello to the person sitting next to us.
I am not basing an entire theory on one movie scene, but I think the questions we ask about the effects of technology on society and face-to-face interaction needs to be redirected toward the human condition and our tendency to entertainment and distraction over developing new friendships and engaging in meaningful, verbal conversation.
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