Technology, like the cricket android, iPad and blackberry can sometimes bring people closer together, and it can also drive people further apart. That is the dynamic between family relationships and the advance of technology. As the Internet makes the world a smaller place, it can also begin to alienate people from each other. Here is a list of the ways that technology works to affect relationships.
1) Parents to Children
When kids are growing up, they tend to want to communicate with their friends more than their parents. Before the Internet, it was difficult for kids to talk to each other all day long. So children had to listen to, and talk with, their parents. With WiFi devices and cellular phones, kids keep in touch with each other all day long. Now it is possible for a child to be in a restaurant with his parents, but never say a word to them or even look at them in lieu of communicating with his friends. It is the wedge that technology drives between parents and children.
2) Family and Friends
The very same Internet that can conspire to eliminate communication between parents and children can reunite friends who have not seen each other in years. Middle-aged people are able to find high school friends that have moved hundreds of miles away through social networking websites. Family members that do not talk throughout the year can now stay in touch over the Internet.
3) Older Family Members
One of the aspects of family relationships that gets lost in the discussion of technology and people is the alienation of older family members. Not everyone wants to learn to use the Internet, and the older family members that do not use it do not get an email address or a social networking page. As children focus more on communicating through the Internet and handheld devices, these older family members get left behind.
The use of technology can be both a curse and a blessing to interpersonal relationships. The ability for younger generations to use technology to limit communication with their parents can be a great reason for parents to become more in tune with technology and the reach of the Internet.
