Negative Societal Impacts of Technology - Research Paper Example

Negative Societal impacts of Technology Today, virtually all of the children in the developed countries have access to computers in learning institutions and over two-thirds access them at their places of residence. Even if a wide consensus is prevalent among teachers, parents, as well as policy makers that it is vital for everyone to become computer competent in order to prepare adequately for life and work in the twenty first century, people are raising questions regarding the impacts of the expanding role of technology in people’s lives within our society. As such, it should be borne in mind that, the increasing use of technological devices such as computers, phones, and television among others is posing serious threats to our society today societal well-being. This paper will seek to research critically on the negative impacts of technology in our society. To begin with, technological advancement is negatively affecting some sectors of businesses. Results derived from scholarly research show that, due to advance technology, some businesses such as newspaper companies have been hit hard and others forced to shut down since customers can access the newspapers free from the internet. This has caused these companies to lay off a huge percentage of their employees resulting to increased level of unemployment in many countries. Big and local newspaper agencies have relentlessly ended up ceasing their business activities hence causing the society a great of financial income. In addition, because of technological introduction of digital printing, companies and businesses are relying heavily on these services rendering the traditional and lithographic printing methods useless (Lechte 362). Furthermore, people do not have to purchase music from music stores anymore as they can download it straight from the internet. This has caused music stores to close their doors for good. Upon researching by use of questionnaires, this paper established that teens who spend most of their time communicating online with people they do not know in multiuser domains and chat rooms, experience greater declines in social involvement and this increases their feelings towards loneliness and depression. This happens because of the fact that, technology hinders personal communication, which in turn affects teens negatively (Harris, Pritchard, and Rabin 94). Despite the fact that our society heralds the internet as a technology wonder, reports show that internet use influences individuals and their social skills negatively. Results from the most recent study in different countries reveal that, people who use the internet frequently spend more than 100 minutes less time with family and friends than those who do not use the internet. This drags teens into loneliness and extreme depression, which in turn leads to aggression and probably drug abuse. Technology is negatively affecting our society in that; it is causing people to have a perpetuated mindset of immediate satisfaction. The creation and availability of a number of portable technological devices is slowly ingraining into people the idea of instant gratification. Availability of technological devices such as the PS3, which allows people to access, and play games wherever they are and anytime is making people learn that they can access enjoyment anytime and in any place (Harris, Pritchard, and Rabin 124). In addition, the presence of cell phones that allows users to keep virtually in touch with friends, work, and family everywhere and at anytime is making people develop a situation whereby they grow learning that they can get pleasure or enjoyment anytime and anywhere. Therefore, lack of these services to addicted users leads to violence, stress, and eventually risk indulging in criminal activities in order to access them. Through research, this paper revealed that technological advancements of internet corrupt the minds of people, influences and changes their moral perspectives and ethical values. This takes place due to the fact that, driven by hundreds of million of dollars in profits, the merchants of pornography from the Western countries open pornographic websites that produce massively various types of sex information. Due to technology, nude women and men are in every corner of our society (McLean and Hurd 77). Performances by computer prostitutes are openly entering the internet and eventually into the society. Furthermore, the internet is helping dominant cultures influence and homogenize our societal cultures in an inferior position. Since the internet is overwhelmingly a culture of the English language, it is strengthening the culture of English language globally. As a result, cultures based on other languages such as the French, the Chinese are weakening, and this is causing advent cultural invasion in our societies. Politically, the internet repudiates and degrades those countries, governments, and political parties that have different ideologies from those of the Western countries. Presence of technology made it possible to host some websites that provides free forums that allows all people to express one-sided views and give examples that serve to demonstrate the backwardness of some countries such as China and its government system in order to control economic development and political affairs of such nations. Moreover, some people utilize such websites to attack profusely other countries’ socialist system, spread anti-party speeches, as well as anti-government views, and even engage in ad hominine attacks on other national leaders of different countries (Varies 73). For instance, this research found out that political critics from the West continue to use the internet and take advantage of China’s systematic reforms and the increasing social instability to disseminate negative views, which include “national salvation via democracy” and “human rights as supreme principle” towards China. Cognitively, technology has negative impacts regarding our global society since such views can spark global war, as China is currently one of the superior countries in the world. To add on that, technology poses both internal and external security threats. This is because; the internet networks in our society become susceptible to invasion due to technology (Vicente 3). Various and different kinds of computer hackers comprises of complex groups with all sorts of ulterior motives. With that sense, they can engage in strikes anywhere causing endless trouble. For example, reports from the US Department of Justice reveal that, some hackers defaced the website of this department and changed it to include a Nazi emblem. Other people entered people’s computers and destroyed data and programs. Through technology, several unnamed organizations use the internet to invade countries and companies’ internal networks whereby they cause major damages to some technical devices. Furthermore, rogue people are using the internet to launch computer viruses targeted at specific networks in order to paralyze and damage them. In summary, as shown in this research paper, technological advancement is negatively affecting our society because the internet is detaching us from what is taking place around us. Technology is also distracting communication and spreading the concept of instant gratification. Most worrisome, technology is leading most useful people within the society to engage in sedentary activities. Through technology, teens are facing depression, countries are facing political terror, cultures are subject to invasion and erosion, and companies as well as individuals are living in fear of computer viruses that pose serious security threats. Essentially, this paper has examined critically how advanced technology is influencing our society negatively. Works Cited Harris, Charles, Pritchard, Michael and Rabins, Gerome. Engineering Ethics: Concepts and Cases. Ohio: Cengage Learning, 2009. Print. Lechte, John. 50 Key Contemporary Thinkers. Routledge: Taylor & Francis, 2008. Print. McLean, Daniel and Hurd, Amy. Kraus' Recreation and Leisure in Modern Society. Sudbury : Jones & Bartlett Publishers, 2011. Print. Vicente, Kim. The Human Factor: Revolutionizing the Way People Live With Technology. New York: Routledge, 2004. Print. Vries, Marc. Teaching About Technology: An Introduction to the Philosophy of Technology for Non-philosophers. New York: Springer, 2005. Print. Read More