The world is continuously evolving with new technological advancements. From new phones to modern computers, to digital watches, technology is taking over the world and is ubiquitous in every aspect. The term “technology” refers to advances in computer technology that resemble processes associated with human intelligence. Technology can do everything that humans can do today with the adaptation of the environment and performing reasoning and sensory understanding. At first, only government and corporate offices and people who relied on research and development of technology implemented computer technology in their everyday lives. However, now, everyone owns at least one piece of technology. Even kids under the age of 10 possess a phone. According to WebMD, 37% of kids aged 8-10 have a phone, and 85% of kids aged 13-17 have a phone. Out of all of these kids, 50% of them have social media accounts. Even though technology alleviates many tasks that humans manually have to do, misuses and excessive uses of social media and technology are known to lead to many negative consequences. Many technological companies aim to make their devices addictive by continually producing new phones, computers, and apps for users to be engaged in… and their plan is working! As a result, humans are becoming more alienated and less united. Excessive use of technology can contribute to a sequestered personality because it increases health problems, causes exploitation of social media, and generates disregard of one's companions.
Using too much technology can cause many health problems and can increase visits to doctors. On the one hand, using technology makes everyone's lives more accessible because they can rely on it to do simple tasks. Want a new pair of jeans, new books, or have fresh groceries delivered to one every month? With the press of one button, the product will arrive at the consumer’s house in less than two days or sometimes even two hours! On the other hand, despite its convenience, technology can increase the risk of obesity because of the scenario previously mentioned, since humans are not spending time at the mall, or going grocery shopping. Thus, technology can decrease physical activity. Many people rely on technology too much, and there are many side effects of doing so.
One such side effect is imposter syndrome. According to Harvard University, imposter syndrome is defined as "a collection of feelings of inadequacy that persist despite evident success. Imposters suffer from chronic self-doubt and a sense of intellectual fraudulence that overrides any feelings of success or external proof of their competence" (Corkindale). This Harvard research proves that technology can lower self-esteem in people. For example, if a social media user is scrolling through one's feed while he is at home and cannot necessarily afford to go on a vacation, the views of others' pictures from exotic locations such as Hawaii, or the Bahamas may result in feelings of jealousy and incompetence. This can lower self-esteem within people because they start comparing themselves to others and find flaws in themselves. According to theMuse, technology is the number one cause for imposter syndrome because users increased in stress and found downtime away from technology completely wasteful (Wilding). Overall, excessive use and reliance on technology can, therefore, lead to and cause many mental health complications including depression, isolation, and narcissism.
In addition, misuse of social media on technology platforms can also quarantine users from the outside world. Social media is designed to be addictive, and it is a platform for users to share pictures and post status updates of what is going on in their everyday lives. Excessive use of social media causes negligence because people are too busy with what is going on with other users' experiences and lifestyles and forget to care about their own. Those who are trapped in the dark, addictive world of social media can also fall into the abyss of cyberbullying or intentional harassment online. Cyberbullying is defined as "bullying that takes place on a digital device." In 2017, according to the National Center for Education Statistics and Bureau of Justice, among students aged 12-18 who reported being bullied, 15% were bullied online or by text (“What Is Cyberbullying”). This can isolate teenagers who are being bullied because their self-esteem is lowered. Most of the victims of cyberbullying do not engage in telling a trusted adult about their scenario, which causes them to stay further away from the helpful guidance of friends and family. Excessive bullying and harassment can lower self-esteem and is usually challenging to recognize users who are living and struggling through it. If the misuse of social media persists for an extended period, it is critical to obtain help before any damage is done. In addition, teenagers can be pressured to perform tasks that they are not comfortable doing. Also, anything that is posted on social media remains on social media and can never be deleted. Even if a user attempts to delete a picture or status update, another user may have already shared it or have taken a screenshot of the information. Therefore, the information shared always remains on the internet. Overall, social media has many adverse side effects and ultimately causes users to live secluded amongst their family and peers.
To add to the burden, technology can seclude humans because overuse of it can generate disregard for their companions. If a user is so engaged in his electronic devices, he might blatantly ignore what his companions are saying to him face-to-face. Users are too busy hyper-focusing on what is happening in others' lives via their electronic devices, and they do not pay attention to the immediate, live environment around them. Technology is designed to be addictive because users can virtually do anything on their mobile devices, and this leads to many of the downsides of technology. For example, if a friend is too busy with her face buried in her phone and her companions who are physically present in the space, are asking her something, eventually, the companions will tire and give up on talking to her. Being on technology too much causes annoyance and anger because it often causes users to ignore their friends. Nowadays, everyone seems to be technology obsessed, and face-to-face communication is being reduced. Elderly grandparents desire a hand-written letter from their grandkids, but all they receive is a text saying: "Thanks, Grandma." This causes the grandparents to think about what they have done in order to receive such an impersonal message over the internet. Another example of loss of connection is, friends can use video call or text each other instead of meeting in a restaurant and having a long-needed face-to-face conversation. Therefore, overuse technology can result in a reclusive personality because users rely too much on their electronic devices and ignore their “real life” companions.
Although there are many negative side effects of technology, technology can also be very useful. For example, users can communicate with relatives who live overseas via email, text, or video chat. They can also see mutual friends on social media and connect with friends whom they have not met in a while. This can cause reconnection amongst a user's college friends or maybe friends from middle or high school. Video chat also makes it simpler to communicate with long-distance friends. In addition, a social media user may post a picture of her child's first day of school in kindergarten and her child's first day of school in ninth grade to show how her child has grown. Technology offers many significant aspects and makes the lives of humans easier.
In conclusion, while technology does have some positive aspects, the excessive use of technology can cause some humans causes suffer more health problems. With less frequent use, technology could be used in adequate proportions, and it would significantly limit the side effects of obesity or imposter syndrome. This will cause humans to be more active and less worried about what is happening on their electronic devices. Also, the exploitation of social media would reduce significantly. Social media would be used solely for sharing appropriate pictures and posting relevant status updates. This way, users will not feel intimidated as to what others are doing, and the “perfect lives” of others will not lower their self-esteem. Humans would be much healthier and involved in their everyday lives with less technology usage, and this decrease would increase face-to-face communication versus communication over the internet. Also, using less technology would result in less ignorance and annoyance amongst one's companions, and they will be interested in talking with each other rather than against each other while hiding cowardly behind a screen. Technology does not have to be dangerous. Overall, if technology is used in adequate proportions and not overused, there will not be so many abysmal consequences, but overuse of technology can contribute significantly to a sequestered personality and eventually cause humans to fall into the abyss of its negative side effects.
Works Cited
Corkindale, Gill. “Overcoming Imposter Syndrome.” Harvard Business Review, 23 July 2014,
https://hbr.org/2008/05/overcoming-imposter-syndrome.
“What Is Cyberbullying.” StopBullying.gov,https://www.stopbullying.gov/cyberbullying/
what-is-it/index.html.
Wilding, Melody J. “5 Types of Imposter Syndrome and How to Stop Them.” 5 Types of
Imposter Syndrome and How to Stop Them - The Muse, The Muse, 10 May 2017,
https://www.themuse.com/advice/5-different-types-of-imposter-syndrome
-and-5-ways-to-battle-each-one.