Summary:
Grown up Digital, by Don Tapscott, attempts to rebut some criticisms of what he calls the “net generation,” which includes people from ages 11 to 30. Other authors have written books filled with these criticisms, Tapscott picks the ten most common ones, one of which is that we are “screenagers” who spend too much time online, time that could be spent socializing, playing sports or other healthy activities. A generation of socially awkward and overweight people has resulted from so much time spent online and less frequent face to face conversations. He cites Mothers Against Videogame Addiction and Violence (MAVAV) who credit video games as the fastest growing endangerment to kids and even say video game addiction is comparable to drug and alcohol abuse.
Response:
While it is true that my generation does spent time online or texting, a lot of it is actually spent being social. When I am on facebook I am often chatting with friends and staying involved in the lives of people that I would otherwise have no access to. I understand the value of face to face interaction but sometimes it is much quicker to just give some a text than to drive to their house to ask a question. Also, you can socialize with more people than one at a time. It could be argued that this is actually being more social than a face to face conversation with only one person. Many games are played online with 12 or so other players and there is a chat feature, enabling one to socialize with people they wouldn’t have known otherwise.
MAVAV is actually a parody website that seemingly plays off the other Mothers against .... websites.
It was probably not the best source for Tapscott to cite because there is not actually a group actively
trying to educate parents on the dangers of video game addiction. Regardless of the validity of the source
I think it says something about our society and how there are groups campaigning for some very
ridiculous causes. Also, many games are played online with 12 or so other players and there is a chat feature, enabling one to socialize with people they wouldn’t have known otherwise.
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I’m pretty confused too. What does technology have to do with feeling adrift in the world and not choosing a specific path or career? How does spending time online relate to staying at home with mom and dad? Because of the Internet and the vast access we have to information, we can see what life is like outside of the shelter that our parents create for us. Knowing that there is more to the world would make me want to move out of my parents’ home as fast as possible and explore. The possibilities are endless. Why wait?
ReplyDeleteI agree with the above post. I feel like many critics of our generation, or 'The Net Generation' are analyzing the worst cases of people being addicted to the internet. I personally have never felt like the internet was controlling my life or that I was losing out on time because of me wanting to sit in front of my computer. Granted, there definitely are people out there that have a problem with playing too many video games or spending too much time on facebook. However, the same can be said for almost everything.
ReplyDeleteI agree. I feel like with the internet we can be more social with more people than ever before. It's funny actually talking to my dad who is far from being a net genner and how he doesn't understand our way of planning things. I am one to not make plans very far in advance, and in fact i usually am pretty spur of the moment. That is one thing that our generation has an advantage of as well. Before the net or before cell phones, plans had to be very precise and couldn't be altered without a lot of effort. Now a simple quick message can change an entire night. I agree entirely that the net generation is much more social than any generation prior.
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