Final Blog

My Relationship with Technology

    At one point in our lives, technology didn't have the significance that it holds today. It wasn't until this past decade that revolutionized our reliance on technology to make everyday activities easier. Fortunately and unfortunately we use technology every day, in fact if you are reading this you are using it right now. With constant technological advancements, it will not be long until the use of technology is limitless. 

Like most, my use of technology everyday is a complicated relationship. Technology such as my smartphone and laptop have become a necessity and make things so much easier. However, technology such as social media, games, and even online shopping can play a very big part in my lack of productivity. 

If technology can have positive and negative effects, do we blame technology or the way we use it? Like all things, if we abuse our use of technology, it can become extremely negative.

Cyberbullying comes to mind when I think of the negative impacts technology has held on us. The word anonymous has played a huge role in the use of technology and how we have been able to say and do anything without our name behind it. As a result, we have seen an increase in depression, stress, and even suicide among adolescents. 

How often we use technology can affect our mental health and our productivity. On average, my daily screen time on my phone is four and a half hours, which may or may not seem like a lot, but that is thirty-one and a half hours per week! Most of my entertainment comes from technology such as scrolling on TikTok, and watching YouTube videos. I've noticed that when I do this, I tend to get extremely distracted and push off important things such as school work, talking to my family members, and even spending time outside of my room.

I have a love-hate relationship with social media. Throughout the years of using social media such as Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok, Twitter, and Facebook I've experienced a lot of body image insecurities. Constantly feeling the need to be relevant, and look like you have an interesting life can be very draining and take away from the positive things that social media can bring.

Cyberthreats can be a direct result of your digital footprint. Any type of information you put out on the internet, can be used against you. I took it upon myself to look up my name to try and find what information people may have about me just by a simple Google search. Here's what I found: my address, my families first and last names, the sport I played in HS as well as my jersey number, my parents occupations, and even my phone number.

Although there could be worse, my privacy doesn't seem to exist as long as people can gather information about me for free via the internet. I am more conscious of the things I put out there and what needs to be deleted moving forward. However, once it is out there, you will never be able to take it back, and there is most likely someone who may have that information to one day use it against you. 

I don't hate technology, although sometimes I hate the way I use it. I think it is your responsibility to decide how it can benefit you and your life whether you are able to communicate with family overseas, work remotely through your computer, learn new things, or just provide entertainment. In addition, being aware and understanding when it becomes controlling of your life is important in preventing the negative impacts that it may have.