In: Psychology
1. Is computer-mediated communication within virtual communities a poor substitute for in-person relationships? Or is it a wonderful way to widen our social circles? (Please explain using social psychological concepts).
2. Does the Internet do more to connect people or to drain time from face-to-face relationships (Please explain using social psychological concepts and don’t confuse “face-to-face relationships” with Face Time).
From my perspective, computer-mediated communication is a wonderful way to widen our social circles. Firstly, it greatly reduces the challenges in communication due to geographical boundaries. Furthermore, in comparison to face-to-face communication, computer mediated communication is not restricted in terms of time and place, and allows communication to happen anytime and anywhere. Also, this method of communication enables users to reach out to a vast number of receivers at the same time. This is especially helpful while disseminating information to a large audience. Finally, computer mediated communication makes initiation of communication easier, especially when there are shyness, appearance or physical limitations. Keeping all these in mind, I believe that is technology is a powerful and useful tool in communication.
Please post the other questions separately as we are supposed to answer just one question or four sub parts of the same question.