Are we like-able?: students discuss the impact of digital socialization

Walk into any classroom at the University of Toledo and you will find people interacting with their cell phone screens more than with each other.
According to third-year psychology major, Elsie Almodovar, face-to-face interaction between people has declined since the creation of social media.
She said social media has become the norm when it comes to connecting with people.
“All we want to do is be connected to each other … not on a personal level, but on a technological level,�? Almodovar said.
Almodovar isn’t the only person noticing how anti-social social media is. Other UT students have noticed, parents have noticed and Hollywood has noticed.
“I think social media is at its height right now and maybe we’re just trying to figure out what to do with it,�? said Kaitlyn Dever, a star of the new Paramount Pictures’ film “Men, Women & Children,�? directed by Jason Reitman.
According to Dever, the movie is about how teens and adults have to navigate through a new world of online social media.
“I think [Reitman] definitely just wanted to tell a true and honest story about what’s going on in the world right now, and how humans are … connecting with each other online,�? Dever said.
Other UT students said that connecting online has become increasingly difficult.
“I can’t connect with people over social media,�? said Gabriella Nusbaum, a first-year biology major.
Nusbaum said she constantly struggles with having a presence on social media.
“I just feel like I’m peer-pressured to be on it,�? Nusbaum said. “There are some days where I feel like I do know what’s going on because I’m on here, and there are some times where this is so distracting and time-sucking and I don’t even really enjoy it.�?
She said it’s hard to post online because everything is constantly being judged.
“I feel like somebody is going to judge me on this. So I don’t even like to post things anyways,�? Nusbaum said.
Social media is not always harmful though, according to Almodovar.
“It can be used in a way other than just tweeting ‘selfies’ and ‘Woman Crush Wednesdays.’ It can be used in a political way, to get news out,�? Almodovar said.
Almodovar said social media is how the world found out about the protests happening in Ferguson, Mo. in late August.
“I think social media is a really resourceful platform and I guess what comes most to mind is how recently it’s been used as a really political platform, like in Ferguson when the media wasn’t really reporting about it, so many people were tweeting about it,�? she said.
Almodovar said most social media is used to tell people what is happening and how to “conform to societal norms,�? however, she said there is online media that tells you the opposite.
“There are a lot of positive, uplifting places you can go on the Internet,�? Almodovar said. “For example, I love Tumblr. I use it a lot, and on Tumblr there are a lot of people that are trying to create a space where people can be themselves; people can be proud of who they are.�?
Dever said her character in the film secretly uses social media as an outlet.
“I think she has a secret Tumblr because she’s trapped in this world where she didn’t know what to do with herself and it’s her only escape,�? Dever said. “I think a lot of teenagers will relate to that aspect of [her] character. It’s just like they’re growing up and they’re trying to decide who they are as people.�?
Almodovar said that how someone defines themselves shouldn’t be based on what other people post online.
“This stuff truly has an impact on us as a society, and we should care that people get so sucked into and consumed by this online culture that they change themselves, or do things they’d never do or kill themselves,�? Almodovar said.
Almodovar said it’s easy to get sucked into these “negative spaces�? on the Internet and think that you’re not good enough. She said you have to ignore it.
Nusbaum said online interactions and posts are exaggerated, and they make you feel lonely.
“I know there are people that are like, ‘I’m going to post this because it makes me look so cool,’ but really they’re not doing that cool of stuff,�? Nusbaum said.
Almodovar said social media has the ability to make people lazy and anti-social.
“I feel like you have to literally stop completely and just go out and talk to people,�? Almodovar said.
Not only are UT students reacting to social media, but other social users have begun to ask the question: how social is social media?
Within the last two weeks, a video titled “Can We Auto-Correct Humanity?�? by artist Prince Ea went viral. The video now has over five million views on YouTube.
In the video he said social media makes us less human.
“I’m so tired of performing in a pageantry of vanity and conforming to this accepted form of digital insanity. Call me crazy, but I imagine a world where we smile when we have low batteries, because that will mean we’re one bar closer to humanity,�? Prince Ea said in his video.
Almodovar agreed with Prince Ea’s message.
“It was like a tiny epiphany,�? she said. “It honestly made me want to put my phone down for a good while and remember what it feels like not to be attached to and stressed out by technology and social media.�?
Almodovar said as social media continues to grow, more people rethink how its used.
The film “Men, Women & Children,�? also starring Adam Sandler, Jennifer Garner and Ansel Elgort, will premiere in theaters on Oct. 17.
“It will make you think twice about not looking down at your phone as much, or maybe just looking up for a minute or two,�? Dever said. “And I think it will just make everyone more aware.�?
To see Prince Ea’s full YouTube video, visit http://tinyurl.com/princeeas.