The Loss of Connection in the Modern World

As of today, we have methods at our disposal to connect with others through social media platforms. The internet has countless websites that are dedicated to communicating with others. However, why is it that we feel lonelier than ever as a society? Could it be that everything seems artificial and meaningful connections are almost impossible to come by?

While we are advancing technologically, one can argue that we are also decreasing our humanity, leaving us feeling empty without connection. The sense of community is lost nowadays as it disappeared over time with the emergence of the digital age. How can it be that we have all the resources available but are lonelier than ever before?

The smartphone has undoubtedly played a massive role in the lack of human connection we face today. People are glued to their cellular devices as it has become an essential in everyday living. We lose ourselves in the digital world with applications like Facebook, Snapchat, Instagram, TikTok, and even YouTube which is a personal favorite of mine. Our dopamine receptors as a result become fried from mindlessly watching from these screens.

Humanity nowadays seems to only care about the amount of likes their picture received or how many views their post has. We care more about the validation of others even when we do not know who most of these people are personally. It’s almost considered unorthodox if an individual tells you they do not participate in social media.

It can get difficult to unplug from all the internet sites and phone applications as we get constantly bombarded with notifications, which allure us to go on these platforms. As a collective, we have become desensitized to the luxuries that technology provided us such as the smartphone, flat-screen tv, and high-speed internet.

While these inventions were created to simplify our lives, it made our lives much more complicated. Back then, the primary method for obtaining information was from telling stories and reading books. The library was the ultimate place to be if one was seeking knowledge, since a specific book could go in depth and provide a person with answers.

Nowadays, a simple Google search will provide hundreds of results at the click of your mouse. While this is mostly a positive result of technology, it shows how incredibly easy it can be to get pieces of information. Same thing goes for human beings. A quick Google search and we can most likely find an individual’s social media pages.

Unfortunately, we base people’s entire lives depending on the content they post on their profile, without even realizing that these individuals have a private existence as well. We live in a self-centered era, where we unconsciously compare ourselves to another’s profile where they post their best aspects of life.

Just over a decade ago, tech did not have the significant impact on our lives as it pertains to now. We find ourselves distracted unable to pay attention and our brain cannot handle the over-stimulation that we now experience regularly. It even goes far to where copious amounts of drivers are unable to focus on the road and would rather put their attention on their cellular device, putting themselves and other people at risk of an accident.

As you can see, being overly “connected” has resulted in people becoming disconnected from the world and people around them. Human beings are social creatures, and we have the primal instinct to feel like we belong to a community. Our face-to-face interactions no longer have as much substance compared to the persona we display to others online. Most people may feel more comfortable interacting online, hence it gives them a chance to manipulate who they are, so they may seem favorable to the masses.

As time goes on, the situation may get worse, due to the unending progression in technology and moving towards a digital world. Using the internet and going online was looked at as a great way to unwind and escape reality. Nowadays, we have to do the exact opposite: escape the internet to go live in reality.

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