Persuasive on Social Networking - Speech or Presentation Example

Persuasive Speech on Social Networking Essay

There has been a drastic growth in internet use since its invention. Both companies and people have since sought ways to capitalize on the benefits of Facebook and other sites. For instance, phone companies now manufacture smartphones as opposed to the previous 'analog' phones that could not access internet services. Today's phones are even built with GPS connectivity that detects a person's location, allowing different Apps to provide more accurate information to individual users even as they are promised of their security. Software engineers have also come up with different Apps for these mobile devices. Most of these Apps are for social networking. Users can communicate with friends, sharing, and retrieving information that of importance to them. The beauty in this aspect of social media is that users can communicate regardless of their location. All their engagements on social media platforms like Facebook can be done directly from their profiles. Social media definitely seems to have come with many goodies.

Despite its advantages, social media also has a downside that needs to be addressed. For instance, it has slowly created a generation of internet addicts. More people, especially children, are slowly isolating themselves from the rest of the world, choosing virtual rather than face-to-face interactions. This addiction also translates to time-wastage as most of these people end up forfeiting important duties for social media. For instance, some people remain idle in their offices as they spend hours on Facebook and many other social media sites, interacting with people, including friends, family, and strangers alike. Other people, like children, even lose concentration while in class or during personal studies due to social media, seeing them witness a drastic drop in their performances. There is also the problem of children misusing or being abused on these platforms if their activities are not regulated. There is so much more that should be of great concern to today's society than could ever be imagined. All these would make more sense and warrant immediate action if children and other people understand the real side-effects of social media.

Addiction is a serious disease that every generation has had to deal with. However, today's society has a weird form of addiction whose magnitude is yet to be understood. For a better understanding, it would be better to compare social media addiction to drug addiction. First, it is necessary to understand that children and all other human beings are social beings. This means that they thrive in an environment of friends and friendship. They love and wish to be loved back. Their only way of escaping loneliness and boredom is by getting into a social environment. Social media gives them this opportunity to exercise their social nature by just logging into sites like Facebook. Sadly, the most affected group is always made up of the unloved, lonely, or people who desire other's approval. Their desperation makes them very gullible, increasing their susceptibility to deceptive internet users. Researchers also reveal something interesting about human beings and their social nature. These researchers show how dopamine, the same hormone released when one takes or abuses drugs, is released from the brain when people hug or even kiss. This is enough proof that an addiction to social environments could produce the same effects as those derived from drugs. This shows why most social media addicts have a problem and challenge getting off their devices once they log into their accounts. Their addictions become more of a problem and are increased as they increasingly desire to feel more loved and accepted in a society that trusts and values them. This is perhaps an explanation that shows how people who are in it for love and relationship end up being addicts and desirous of more of the 'dopamine-effect' they experience during their interactions.

It is scary to think that most social media addicts never even know that they are addicted. This lack of awareness worsens their addictions as they never get the urge to stop by seeking help. To them, these are normal interactions that are never detrimental in any way. They would even reject if they were to be told that they have been made gullible due to their uncontrolled use of technology. Unless there is a speedy intervention, people like children could easily acquire and struggle with mental disorders through their overuse of Facebook or any other social media platform. However, most people would refute the fact that there is a problem with time spent on social media is dangerous to a child's mental health. They offer a rebuttal with the idea that social media actually has a positive effect on a person's emotional status as it connects him to friends. Most don't understand how social media affects users when it seemingly creates an opportunity for people to relieve their emotional distress through the support they find online.

Interestingly, studies support the fact that social media indeed ha an adverse effect on a person's emotional health. These effects result from spending too much time on social media, especially Facebook, leading to loneliness and isolation from public places. It subsequently leads to other serious medical concerns like dementia, heart diseases, and cancer. What many people do not understand is that any relationship formed in social media is always long distant. Such relationship and friendships do not give people a chance to break the social barriers and meet face-to-face as they never see the need to move from place to place to meet. This stagnation in one place has both mental and physical effects on everything on such relationships. It is a problem that could get even more serious if not addressed.

Spending more time on social media sites like Facebook hinders people's chances of improving their talents or abilities. This is unlike what has always been said about social media being a place where talent is grown and natured. It is indeed a good place for all those who have already discovered their talents and use Facebook and other social media platforms correctly. They could upload videos of them cracking jokes, singing, or dancing. Other creative like artists could also share their priceless designs on social media platforms like Facebook to attract more likes, views, and sales. No one can refute such benefits as they are evident among the most successful internet users. However, these are only enjoyed by a small percentage of social media users, since a larger percentage is always made up of users who are still in the process of nurturing their talents and abilities. Sadly, they spend more hours engaging on Facebook and other social media platforms than they spend trying to sharpen their skills – no one sees a problem with this. This is a valuable time that they might never recover if they never limit their addictions.

My research on the effects of social media among fellow students revealed shocking results. I was specifically concerned with the relationship that existed between social media use and education. Most students stated that social media was a distraction from their studies. This was evident in the results produced by top-performing students as they spent limited time on social media sites. It showed how people's performances were negatively affected when they allowed themselves to be distracted by social media – especially Facebook. Those who used it excessively witnessed a drop in their grades. These are shocking results given that all the respondents were mature adults pursuing higher education in college. It makes one wonder about the effects of social media on children, whose cognitive abilities are still in the formative stages and who can easily be influenced by something like social media. Children are as definitely more affected than their adult counterparts.

It is without a doubt that the younger generation is more prone to the addictions brought about by technology. They live in an environment where they are exposed to all manner of social sites and technological devices. Interestingly, most are forced into such addictions by the older generation, which expects them to be very knowledgeable about matters to do with technology. Having no knowledge of social media sites or how to use them almost makes individual feel like an outcast among people – children included. Unless this pressure is reduced, more students will continue to be exposed to the addictions of using social media overwhelmingly. It is also a concern that more opportunities continue to emerge through social media. For instance, friends can no longer just chat with each other, but can today even send pictures and video recordings. Friends can even engage in video conversations by calling each other life online. This is another explanation that explains why social media transcends face-to-face interacts since it tends to replicate every experience that friends would have in their physical interactions. Overreliance on these is the main reason for physical and emotional health challenges witnessed by social media addicts.

International students have shocking stories of how social media platforms like Facebook turned them into zombies. Being an international student takes one from a familiar to an unfamiliar environment. It forces such people to form new friends and learn new languages based on local dialects. This is a tough period for first-timers who might have to spend more time trying to learn new languages to socialize with locals. Most end up turning to social media and conversing with friends and family back home as they long for their former social experiences that were never limited by culture or language. Other people might choose to form more friendships online with people they feel could help them comprehend the new language. Sadly, this never proves to be an effective way of learning a language as it is not as organized as the traditional way of spending more hours talking to locals. Spending hours on social media also means that they have to divide their time between catching up with friends and family, forming a new relationship, and learning through social media engagements. There is a problem as more duration is always spent with people, like friends, than on school-related engagements. It all ends up in a disaster if it is never controlled.

An introspection of my habits reveals that I am mostly addicted to social media sites that I create little time for school work. It, at times, takes the intervention of my family and friends to be reminded of such an addiction. For instance, I have a cousin who has formed a habit of keeping me in check every moment I stray from my books. Such accountability is all that makes me try balancing my social media engagement and personal studies. Otherwise, I would find myself forfeiting physical exercises, sleep, and school assignment for Facebook – which is a serious problem. I believe that I am only part of a larger statistics of people whose addictions to Facebook and other social media sites have overtaken them to the extent that they overlook any other meaningful engagement.

It is sad to know that having thousands of friends and followers on social media platforms isn't a sign of a happy life or a healthy relationship. Most people end up being lonelier than they were before they got onto social media platforms like Facebook. Many of these people discover that they weakened those relationships they previously had by spending more duration online and limiting social moments spent with friends and family. Their loneliness is suddenly not quenched by their frequent virtual interactions online. Unfortunately, this reality dawns on people after losing some of the most valuable relationship that they had before social media.

It is evident that social media has numerous benefits among people who use it. Most people, with impeccable abilities to balance their time, have been able to effectively gamble between crucial activities -like work and school- and social media interactions. Sadly, a larger majority of people have been victims of social media, revealing the negative side of these platforms on the lives and health of internet users. The first step to addressing these issues is by recognizing that social media is more destructive than beneficial. Next would be to find ways of stopping or limiting the addictions to Facebook through a change of habits. Otherwise, people will continue to experience the wrath of internet usage on their relationship. These are some of the ideas you should include in a persuasive speech on social networking essay.