Diversity and technology

 Have you ever thought about how technology is affecting your everyday life?   Sherry Turkle is a social psychologist who has spent many years studying this very subject (Turkle, 2012).   In her research, she finds that we may be suffering negative effects of being on our cell phones and using social media too much.  If you pay close attention when you are out at a restaurant, look around to see how many families are eating together in a physical sense, but are not really together in an emotional sense because they are all glued to their smart phones (Turkle, 2012).  For a course on diversity, this is important to how we communicate with one another and interact on a daily basis.   It creates the foundations of reality for us and shapes our reactions, doesn’t it?   Think about how we might become envious of someone else’s life because of the happy photos they post on Facebook.   Other social media outlets, like SnapChat and Instagram, literally allow us to filter what we look like in photos.   We get to present to the world an ideal version of ourselves and our lives.   Also consider the amount of personal information we put out about ourselves on social media platforms.   Everyday we are setting ourselves up to be judged whether it be by friends, family, or even future employers.