Rewriting a Critical Reflection
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Critical Reflection 4 - Rewrite
The last few decades have involved the rapid
development of different technologies, one of the major types being
communication-technologies. As communication-technologies have advanced, they
have become reliable, easily accessible and an integral part of our society today.
About 25 years ago, Australia was only first introduced to the most basic form
of internet (Zobel, 2014). At this point in time the most popular form of communication-technology
was email, and many couldn’t believe the expanse of the online community and
the speed of communication (Zobel, 2014).
The technology has only continued to advance and has slowly shaped
communities and their methods of communication (Ranney & Troop-Gordon,
2015). A few key changes to communication include speed, method and style. However,
these have also come with some issues such as privacy and a decrease in human
connection.
The rise of recent technologies
in our society has led to extremely quick communication, with easy access to
the latest technologies and messaging apps (Wong, 2016). Mobile phones,
tablets, laptops can all be used to contact someone at any time of the day and
from anywhere. It also provides easy access to assistance in the event of an
emergency - help can be reached wherever you are (Ling, 2004).
These types of technologies
have been especially helpful personally, as they allow for me to communicate with
extended family I don’t see often, or can’t visit because they live overseas. This
has given us the opportunity to create a relationship, even if we can’t see
each other face-to-face.
Our methods of
communication have also changed as many people choose to message or call
someone rather than meet up and have a conversation face-to-face. This provides
convenience and gives access to people who aren’t close by, or are even in
another country with the click of a button (Wong, 2016).
Communication style is
another significant change present in today’s society. With the constant use of
text-based communication-technologies such as social network sites and email,
an individual’s experience of a conversation can be impacted. These methods
reduce the use of non-verbal cues (like eye-contact, body language, tone of
voice, etc.), affecting the way that messages are perceived and the amount of
emotion that can be expressed (Ranney & Troop-Gordon, 2015).
As mentioned before, the number
of advances made to technology has also resulted in various ethical issues
important in our current society, such as privacy and lack of human connection.
Advancements in technology
have meant it is too easy for information to be accessed from anywhere and a
person’s movements to be tracked. This is a breach of their privacy and has to
be carefully monitored when using technology (Mishra, 2015). I have
participated in the use of these technologies, and have noticed there are steps
to take to ensure that you are protecting your information as best you can. For
example, Facebook is a platform where many people choose to share a number of
private details that could be accessed by people they don’t know. However, Facebook has provided users with a number of privacy options and settings to protect information.
Another issue developing is
a lack of human connection. This is due to the quick nature of technology and
its convenience and portability, however it leads to a decrease in human interaction (Wong,
2016). It is also due to the easy accessibility, even when with friends and
family.
Communication-technologies
is a topic I am very familiar with and I am confident that they have changed
our society mostly for the better. However, my experience has led me to
continually question the value of our privacy with these technologies…
References:
Ling, R. (2004). The mobile connection: the cell phone’s impact on society. San Francisco, CA: Elsevier.
Mishra, M. (2015). Ethical, legal and social aspects of information and communication technology. [Online Article] Retrieved from https://arxiv.org/pdf/1507.08447.pdf
Ranney, J, D., & Troop-Gordon, W. (2015). Problem-focused discussions in digital contexts: the impact of information and communication technologies on conversational processes and experiences. Computers in Human Behavior, 51, 64-74. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2015.04.038
Wong, W. (2016). How technology has changed the way we communicate. [WebPage]. Retrieved from http://blog.wps.com/how-technology-has-changed-the-way-we-communicate/
Zobel, J. (2014). How Australia connected to the internet 25 years ago. [WebPage]. Retrieved from http://theconversation.com/how-australia-connected-to-the-internet-25-years-ago-28106
Feedback
The following are screenshots of feedback written by my peers and left on my blog post. I have used them to adjust and rewrite this post.
Original Post/Critical Reflection
The following is a copy of the original post I published:
The last 2 decades has involved the rapid development of different technologies, one of the major types being communication-technologies. As communication-technologies have advanced they have become reliable, easily accessible and an integral part of our society today, as they have slowly shaped community and their methods of communication (Ranney & Troop-Gordon, 2015). A few key changes to our communication include speed, method and style.
The rise of recent technologies in our society has led to extremely quick communication, with easy access to the latest technologies and messaging apps (Wong, 2016). Mobile phones, tablets, laptops can all be used to contact someone at any time of the day and from anywhere. It also provides easy access to assistance in the event of an emergency - help can be reached wherever you are (Ling, 2004).
Our methods of communication have also changed as many people choose to message or call someone rather than meet up and have a conversation face-to-face. This provides convenience and gives access to people who aren’t close by, or are even in another country with the click of a button (Wong, 2016).
Communication style is another significant change present in today’s society. With the constant use of text-based communication-technologies such as social network sites and email, an individual’s experience of a conversation can be impacted. These methods reduce the use of non-verbal cues (like eye-contact, body language, tone of voice, etc.), affecting the way that messages are perceived and the amount of emotion that can be expressed (Ranney & Troop-Gordon, 2015).
There are various ethical issues that are important in our current society. The two I will discuss are privacy and lack of human connection.
Advancements in technology have meant it is too easy for information to be accessed from anywhere and a person’s movements to be tracked. This is a breach of their privacy and has to be carefully monitored when using technology (Mishra, 2015). I have participated in the use of these technologies, and have noticed there are steps to take to ensure that you are protecting your information as best you can.
Another issue developing is a lack of human connection. This is due to the quick nature of technology and its convenience, however it leads to a decrease in human interaction (Wong, 2016). It is also due to the easy accessibility, even when with friends and family.
Communication-technologies is a topic I am very familiar with and I am confident that they have changed our society mostly for the better. However, my experience has led me to continually question the value of our privacy with these technologies…
- Eliza
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