Many people feel lonely, even when constantly communicating. Socializing on our phones may be efficient, but in my experience, it does not maximize our social benefit and may leave people feeling more isolated in the long run. Often we are left unsatisfied or with a short-term satisfaction after we put our devices down.
Having a lack of public spaces where people congregate is a concern, especially here on campus where the suppression of clubs and associations gathering spaces has been a pretty big problem over the past few years. Human interaction has been relegated to the online sphere, be it through institutional suppression (such as the lack of places to hang out) or the fact that humans tend toward convenience (it’s easier to chat online than to go out and meet in person).
What I see in this a larger trend where our society has become highly isolated from each other. American sociologist George Ritzer coined the term “McDonaldization,” defined as “the process by which the principles of the fast-food restaurant are coming to dominate more and more sectors of American society as well as the rest of the world.” By this, he’s referring to predictability, standardization, efficiency, and convenience. We’ve absorbed a refined, specialized, and automated culture which allows us to put less and less thought into basic tasks. Everything is quick and dirty, in and out, just like how McDonald’s operates. With Skip The Dishes, grocery delivery, e-transfers, and technology being used as a primary form of communication and transaction, we can spend entire weeks at home and hardly ever physically interact with other humans. This could be seriously damaging to our human psyche. In my opinion, humans were not made to live this way or we would probably never have ventured outside of caves and would be some sort of weird, deformed, bat-like creatures who’d never seen the sun.
Many will argue that communicating through social media and technology is vital because it keeps us connected with people we can’t often see, which is true. Personally though, I would much rather see my grandmother and give her a hug than tell her I miss her over a Facebook post. This seems more like a last resort than an actually satisfying interaction. When we’re too busy, broke, or anxious to actually find the time and means to interact with each other, these things seem beneficial. I think we’re failing to address a larger underlying and systemic issue: the reason we are so limited in the resources of time and money is due to a capitalist system that doesn’t really care about our well-being.
Quantity of interaction doesn’t necessarily equal quality. With mental health issues becoming more common in society, we need to be working toward prioritizing our time to include things that make us mentally feel better. We often think we can replace the social experience online, but I argue that we are missing out on the rewards of face-to-face interaction. I’m a big believer that emotional vibes can be transferred directly between people. So go check out some fun social events that may carry some good vibes, and push yourself out of your comfort zone. Your phone won’t give you the same experience as attending an actual event with actual people can.
Darien Johnsen is a UFV alumni who obtained her Bachelor of Arts degree with double extended minors in Global Development Studies and Sociology in 2020. She started writing for The Cascade in 2018, taking on the role of features editor shortly after. She’s passionate about justice, sustainable development, and education.
