effectsoftheinternet

[effectsoftheinternet]

Goodbye and Thanks!!

Well. Here we are. Weeks later, and my semester is coming to a close. It has been amazing to learn about how the internet is really affecting us. I’ve learned so much, and I hope you guys learned something too. We’ve covered

Learning via the Internet

Educating via the Internet

Communicating via the Internet

Broadcasting via the Internet

Socializing on the Internet

Emotion and the Internet

Motivation and the Internet

Perception and Attention on the Internet

Judgment and Decision Making on the Internet

Development and Aging on the Internet

Personality and the Internet

Clinical Psychology on the Internet, and

Research via the Internet

It was so interesting to learn how each of these topics impact us. The internet is an essential part of our lives now, so I think it’s good to actually know how it changes us. I loved learning what’s true and what are just myths.

Thank you all for reading these posts, and a big thank you to all of my followers. When I started this project, I didn’t think I would have any followers, but that didn’t happen! I thought this class was fascinating, and I was happy to be able to share all of this with all of you. I really hope you guys enjoyed it! Thank you all again!!

[effectsoftheinternet]

Looking Forward on the Internet

If I told you that way back in 1926, Nikola Tesla predicted that wireless communication would “virtually eliminate distance” and that we would be able to communicate with each other instantly, regardless of the distance between them, would you believe me? Or that he predicted that we would eventually witness and hear about news as it happened, just like the president?  How about that Tesla predicted that one day, we would be able to fit telephones in the pocket of our vests? Well, he predicted all of these things, back almost 100 years ago. He predicted cell phones, but not that we would stop basically stop wearing vests…

He wasn’t the only person that predicted these technological advances. A man named Arthur C. Clarke predicted so much. Computers, the internet, smartwatches and cellphones, the fall of newspapers, texting… Steve Jobs, during the unveiling of the first iPhone in 2007, predicted that Apple was reinventing the phone. Well, it certainly did that. A guy named Eric Schmidt stated that one day, all big companies will be using the internet.

So, if all of these people predicted so much change to technology, even back in 1926, how is technology going to change going forward? My class all had to come up three ideas each on how we think this is going to happen. Mine were that drones will be the main delivery system for online orders, self-driving cars, and voice activated devices for the home that can do things like look up information, control the lights in the house or the temperature, and set timers. I think Google has a device like this, but I think it’ll become more widespread. Other students in my class predicted things like the self-driving cars and drone deliveries, but also robots that do household chores, educations becoming more dependent on e-books and tablets, and more 3D projections/technology (kinda like in Iron Man).

It’s hard to guess where technology is going. It’s changing so fast that I can’t even imagine where it’ll be 20 years from now. Personally, I think it’s quite amazing to see all that’s been accomplished, even if it’s a little scary. I’m excited to see how it changes, and how it changes our daily lives.

[effectsoftheinternet]

Research via the Internet pt 3

Social media is a great way to collect data. It can be used for many things, ranging from determining the popularity of different NCAA Football and MLB Baseball teams based off of Facebook likes, to Twitter giving us data on heart disease or contagious illnesses, or looking at Amazon and Barnes and Noble for political differences based on book purchases.

I chose to read about Twitter as data for heart disease. I read an article titled “Psychological Language on Twitter Predicts County-Level Heart Disease Mortality" by Eichstedt et al (2015). In it, the researchers looked at Twitter data and county-level socioeconomic, health and health data. They used data from 1,347 different counties in the United States, and they looked at over 50,000 tweeted words.

The study had three main findings. The first was that language expressed on Twitter could show several community level factors that were associated with heart disease mortality risk. Second, using negative-emotion words and using negative relationship language was also predictive of heart disease risk, but positive emotion and positive relationship language was protective. Finally, they found that language used on Twitter accounted for ten different demographic, socioeconomic, and health variables.

They found that Twitter was a better predictor of heart disease mortality risk that smoking, diabetes, income and education, hypertension, and obesity. It’s insane to think that Twitter can predict heart disease mortality risk so well. If we can learn this from Twitter, what else can we learn from social media?

[effectsoftheinternet]

Research via the Internet pt 2

This was a really quick assignment giving us practice with coding and assigning groups. We had to read the abstracts of 11 different articles. Most of them had to do with online surveys vs pencil-and-paper surveys, but a few of them tested even more methods than that.

Overall, it seems like the articles all came up with the same conclusion. Internet based surveys tend to be as reliable as regular old pencil-and-paper surveys. I wasn’t too surprised by this. Most people are able to use the internet without problems, and internet surveys are generally set up in effective, user friendly ways. The only time I could see internet surveys posing a problem is when you have participants that are not good with computers, or just don’t know how to work them at all. This probably wouldn’t happen, since you should know if your population is computer literate.

[effectsoftheinternet]

Research via the Internet pt 1

This week we looked at research on the internet. This includes online surveys. What all goes into making a survey? What kind of questions should you use?

Well, when it comes to making a survey and learning about different types of questions, this article by Science Buddies is pretty informative. It begins by defining what a survey questionnaire is, and then moves into the objectives, different types of questions, and when you should use certain questions. There are structures questions and non-structured questions.

Structured or Fixed Response: These are questions that offer a closed, fixed set of responses. Often, these are multiple choice, yes/no, rating, ranking… things like that. They are best used when you have a thorough understanding of the responses that you can get, and when you’re not trying to find new ideas or thoughts from the participants.

Non-Structured or Open-Ended: These are questions where there isn’t a list of choices to pick from. They generally are free response, fill-in-the-blank type questions. Often, they’re used when you’re not sure about the responses you’ll get, and this also allows participants to give new ideas to the researchers.

There’s more than just knowing which types of questions you might put on a survey or questionnaire. We read different articles listing tips on how to put together a survey.

Clearly state your intentions with the research

Include instructions with the survey

Don’t ask for personal information unless you need it

If you do need it, put it at the end so people don’t see it and decide not to take the survey

Keep the questions short, clear, and concise

Only ask one question at a time

Make sure the questions are unbiased and unleading

Ask questions that can be answered by the participants

Avoid technical terms and jargon

Provide reference frames, such as providing times

Make sure scales are ordinal

Obviously, there are a lot of tips on how to make good surveys. After reading all of these in different articles, we had to then make our own short survey. The purpose is to determine whether others think that internet surveys are able to provide accurate data.

My results showed that my participants believed the internet based surveys can provide data that is just as good, often better, than in person surveys, mail surveys, and phone surveys. Some of their reasons were that it provides more anonymity so the participants might not feel judged, or that it allows them to take more time in answering. On the other hand, they feel like they might not be as accurate at times because you often cannot explain your answers, and some people might just rush through the survey to be done with it.

[effectsoftheinternet]

Clinical Psychology and the Internet pt 2

To start off this assignment, we had to take an internet addiction quiz. It’s from 1999, so it may be a little dated, but it still seems extremely relevant. Following this, we had to read about internet addiction and unplugging.

Maria Konnikova’s article, “Is Internet Addiction a Real Thing?”, highlights some of the ways in which internet addiction resembles a substance addictions.

Both substance addictions and internet addiction are characterized by an inability to control certain behaviors

Both addictions have a genetic basis and those genetics seem to have common characteristics

In other ways, internet addiction and substance addiction are totally different.

Internet addiction is resistant to treatment, comes with significant risks, and has high relapse rates

The internet is a medium, not an actual behavior or activity

It’s harder to pin down a definite, negative effect of internet addiction, which in a way, makes it more complicated

Substance addiction affects a person physically in a way that a behavior simply cannot

The article also brings up some really good points about internet addictions. One of those is that the internet is rapidly changing, so it makes it more difficult to understand internet addiction. Additionally, it is almost impossible to live without using the internet anymore. You can’t expect to just unplug and be fine. It isn’t possible. Therefore, it’d be difficult to avoid the internet in order to get better.

Now, to talk about unplugging from the internet. First, there’s this fun video called “If People Left Parties Like They Leave Facebook”. It’s about exactly what it sounds like. Next, let’s talk about an article from the New Yorker by Casey Cep called “The Pointlessness of Unplugging”. The article lists a single reason why it makes sense to occasionally unplug from the internet. This reason is that when we unplug for a bit and then come back, we often have a newfound appreciation for the internet. Cep also states why it doesn’t make sense to unplug. Those are:

We often unplug for reasons that we originally went online for- to be more connected, to spend more time with family or friends

Unplugging suggests that the selves we are online aren’t authentic, that the relationships that we make online aren’t meaningful

Unplugging from devices doesn’t stop us from experiencing our lives through their lenses, frames, and formats

We’d do better to reflect on how we can live in the modern world that is full of gadgets and electronics than to pretend we can live elsewhere.

So, I guess unplugging once and awhile makes some sense, but not permanently unplugging. On the other hand though, it’s unhealthy to be totally dependent and addicted to the internet. There needs to be a balance.

[effectsoftheinternet]

Clinical Psychology and the Internet pt 1

A randomized control trial is a type of experiment in which the participants are randomly assigned to a treatment group. This type of experiment often has a control group as one of the groups.

After reading about what a randomized control trial is, we had to pick one of fifteen articles to read, all of which used this experiment method. Many of the articles also involved a form of internet Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, or CBT. I chose to read Kaldo et al.’s (2015) study “Guided Internet Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia Compared to a Control Treatment: A Randomized Treatment”.

The goal of the experiment was to evaluate whether therapist guided internet-delivered cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia was more effective when compared to an active internet-delivered control treatment. There were ten different criteria for choosing participants:

Must be 18 years or older

Have an insomnia diagnosis according to the research criteria from American Academy of Sleep Medicine

Have insomnia at a clinical defined level as more than 10 points on ISI

Must be able to read and write in Swedish

No comorbid sleep disorders primarily requiring other treatment

No consumption of alcohol or drugs that would substantially impact sleep

Not started to use or change the dose of antidepressant drug during the past 2 months

No somatic or psychiatric conditions requiring acute care being contraindication of essential interventions in insomnia treatment

Not fulfilling the DSM-IV criteria for current Major Depression episode

Not working night shifts.

Participants either assigned to the condition where they received the internet delivered CBT or to a condition where they received some treatment, but the most effective CBT were left out (this was their control). The results showed that compared to the control, therapist guided internet delivered CBT was more effective at decreasing insomnia immediately after treatment, six months later, and a year later. Self-rated scores of insomnia severity were significantly lower in those that received treatment. Since there was no true control group, the results showed that those in the control-like group still had declines in insomnia levels.

A lot of the other studies showed that internet delivered CBT was actually pretty effective. Internet delivered/computerized CBT can provide people who live in more remote areas better access to therapy, it can reduce the cost of therapy, and it helps people avoid the negative stigma that surrounds therapy. This is extremely important since anxiety disorders affect about 20% of American adults every year, and about 25% of American adolescents. “A Meta-Analysis of Computerized Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for the Treatment of DSM-5 Anxiety Disorders” by Adelman et al (2014) was an interesting article that studies whether or not computerized CBT works, and they showed that it does.

[effectsoftheinternet]

Personality and the Internet pt 3

Why do people show a right side bias when taking selfies? Why do we look different in selfies than we do in the mirror? Are selfies a tool of communication? There are so many questions surrounding this subject, and here I am to answer some of them for you!

First, a little history on selfies. With all of the fancy technology we have now, it’s easy to take selfies. Selfies, however, have been around for a whole lot longer than what we think. Painting self-portraits could be considered a selfie in a way, but even without these, selfies can be traced back to the 1800’s. Some people used mirrors, which is a trick people still use now. This includes an unknown woman from 1900

the Grand Duchess Anastasia in 1914

and even Jackie Kennedy in 1954 

Other people just held their cameras, some that were too big for one person to hold. Some famous ones include Buzz Aldran, the second person to walk the moon

George Harrison

and this group of people on the roof of Marceau’s Studio in New York.

And of course, the most retweeted picture of all time was a selfie that Ellen DeGeneres took at the 86th Academy Awards.

There was quite a bit of talk and rumors that selfies prove how narcissistic and psychopathic our generation is. This isn’t true. People’s self-rated level of narcissism explains less than 4% of the variation in posting selfies, and their self-rated level of psychopathy explains less than 3%.

So. Why do people show a right side bias when it comes to taking selfies? It really comes down to asymmetries in the face. If you want to read more about the study, it was Bruno &

Bertami's (2013) article, "Self-Portraits: Smartphones Reveal a Side Bias in Non-Artists."

Why is it that we look different in selfies than we do in the mirror?  What we see in selfies is actually us, and not just our mirror image. We are used to seeing our mirror image but not our real image. The closeness of the camera lense during selfies warps the facial features. Most people tend to prefer their mirror image over how they look in selfies, and the only way to really get used to how you look in selfies is by taking more of them and getting used to how you look from different angles.

Are selfies a form of communication? They are! James Franco had a really good article “The Meanings of the Selfies” explaining why. Part of it is because it allows people to present something to a visual society what they’re doing. For celebrities, it helps catch other people’s attention.

This assignment taught me a lot about selfies. I don’t personally take selfies unless I absolutely have to, but hey, if that’s what you’re into, whatever. Whether you avoid selfies like the plague or are slightly addicted, I hope that you were able to learn something!

[effectsoftheinternet]

Personality and the Internet pt 2

How do these personality traits interact with the internet? I know it’s a common thought that those who more introverted use the internet more. Other ideas might be that someone who is higher in openness might use the internet more, or someone with X, Y, or Z personality. All of this is actually untrue. Personality can explain just a small percent of the variation in internet use.

Whaaat? Really? I was actually pretty surprised to learn this! There have been a lot of studies done that show how little personality influences internet use. This holds true while looking at things like

Personality and Problematic Internet/Texting Use (Buckner, Castille, & Sheets, 2012)

Personality and Social Media Use (Correa, Hinsley, & de Zúñiga, 2010; Kim & Chung, 2014)

Personality and Twitter/Facebook use for Information/Social Use (Hughes, Rowe, Batey, & Lee, 2012)

Personality and Internet Use (Marriott & Buchanan, 2014)

This list goes on. Most personality traits explain 0-3% of the variance online. So, as shocking as it may be, personality really doesn’t influence the way that we use the internet.

[effectsoftheinternet]

Personality and the Internet pt 1

The Big Five personality traits are known to be extrovertion, agreeableness, openness, neuroticism, and conscientiousness. Everybody varies on these traits, and that seems to be pretty universal throughout the world. You can be high in some traits, low in some, or even just average/right in the middle. For me personally, I am low (extremely low) in extroversion, high in conscientiousness, high in neuroticism, average in agreeableness, and low in openness. How do I know this? Well, I took two different tests that gave me similar answers. Those were The Five Factor Personality Test and The Big Five Personality Test.

So, what do all of these traits mean?

Extroversion reflects the preference for social situations and how you might behave in them. People who are high in this trait tend to be more energetic and seek out the company of others. Low scorers often are more quiet, reserved, and independent.

Agreeableness shows how we tend to interact with others. People high in this tend to be more trusting, friendly and cooperative, while low scorers tend to be less so. Low scorers tend to put their own needs before those of others and are generally less empathetic.

Conscientiousness reflects how organized and persistent we are in pursuing our goals. Those who score high are methodical, hardworking and well organized. Low scorers, on the other hand, are less careful, less focussed, and more likely to be distracted from tasks.

Neuroticism is the tendency to experience negative thoughts and feelings, such as anxiety, sadness, guilt, and shame. Low scorers tend to be relaxed, less emotional and less prone to distress, while high scorers tend to more emotionally reactive, especially in situations that might cause negative emotions.   

Openness reflects 'open-mindedness' and interest in culture. High scorers tend to be imaginative, creative, and to seek out cultural and educational experiences. Low scorers are more down-to-earth, traditional, and more practical in nature.

As I said, everyone varies on these five traits, and there are benefits to being high and low for each trait. There is a lot of variation, so please, never feel like you’re weird or odd for scoring differently than someone else.

While some of the benefits for high/low scores in most of these traits are fairly obvious, the benefits of being introverted might not be so apparent. Susan Cain’ TedTalk video, “The Power of Introverts” discusses a lot of good points surrounding this. Introverts are not shy, they are not antisocial (though this is often used interchangeably, I cannot stress how different antisocial and introvert are). We just react to social stimulation differently. Often, I feel like introverts get a bad image, because we’re not outgoing, we’re not always social people, we like to have our alone time. People seem to just expect everyone to be outgoing and social, but that just isn’t how everyone is.

Society is built for extroverts. This weird fascination with groupwork is designed to suit extroverts, and feed this idea that we are always going to have to work with other people. People do need to know how to work alone. There needs to be a balance between the two. Introverts, however, tend to do their best work alone. We tend to get better grades and are generally more knowledgeable. Often, introverted leaders tend to deliver better outcomes since we tend to be better at managing others and allow others to run with their ideas, but we are habitually passed over for leadership positions.

In her video, Susan Cain  names some well known people, including Eleanor Roosevelt and Gandhi, as being introverts.She also talks about ambiverts, which is when you’re both an extrovert and an introvert. Cain discusses the idea of how important solitude can be. At the end, she states three calls to action: stop the insane amount of groupwork, go to the wilderness and have a revelation, take a good look what’s inside your suitcase and why you put it there (this makes sense in the context of the video, I promise).

[effectsoftheinternet]

Development and Aging on the Internet pt 4

Even though there are a lot of positives to people using internet and technology, not everyone is able to get access to these necessities. Internet is really a modern day necessity. It’s essential in everyday life, and is no longer a luxury, though a lot of people treat it as such. The digital divide prevents a large amount of people from being able to use these. The divide not only exists between rich and poor people, but also between nations. Only about 30% of the world’s population had access to the internet. That leaves about 70% of the world that is unable to access internet or computers. Most of those that are able to access this are from the United States, or Europe. There is a lot of data out there showing how big of a problem this is. “The State of Digital Divides” by the Pew Research Center shows some really eye-opening statistics on it.

Sadly, there are not a lot of practical ways to fix this problem. There is one project down in Mexico aiming to fix both the education gap and the digital divide in Mexico. It is called RIA, or the Network of Innovation and Learning. It is setting up centers in lower income areas that provide a ton of computers and provide training and courses on how to use them.

Another way people are trying to fix this divide is by providing affordable tablets in India. Datawind is offering tablets at about $30. They may not be as fancy and advanced as what many of us are used to, but they still have a lot of functions. This price also includes an entire year of internet access. After this year, they can purchase internet access for a relatively low fee.

There are others ways that this divide could be healed. Providing free internet nationwide would be a great way to start. Offering lower income families computers (say ones that have been donated) that they could have would also help. Public libraries are a great resource, but often they are underfunded and don’t have enough computers for the public to use. These great resources need to be better funded. Unfortunately for America, these changes probably won’t happen because many of the people in power are too money hungry to help anyone they deem “lazy”.

[effectsoftheinternet]

Development and Aging on the Internet pt 3

There are a lot of ways that we can help elderly people use the internet more. One program, Speaking Exchange, is a great program that sets up video chats, pairing together teenage English language learners from Brazil with lonely elderly folks in nursing homes. This then allows the teens to improve their language skills, and it provides the elderly people with someone to chat with. I think this is an amazing program

Additionally, an article by Jeh Kazimi titled “10 ways to help older people use the internet” gives us ten tips on helping the elderly use the internet/technology! Here are the tips:

1. Health and physical issues can get in the way of them learning and using technology so easily - While this may seem obvious, it is often an overlooked point. This can include the most basic of things, such as remembering where the volume button is.

2. Basic settings can help, if you can find them - Things like text size and volume can usually be changed in the settings menu, but older people probably don’t know where to begin finding these options, or that these even exist.

3. Touch screens are easier - Research has shown than the elderly, once taught properly, get on far better with a tablet than a traditional computer since touch screens are more intuitive than a mouse, and the lack of wires is less scary.  

4. … but these aren’t without their problems - The way older people hold devices or touch the screen can be problematic to the way touch screens are due to response times. Shaky hands and multiple fingers on the screen at once can cause problems as well.

5. Technology uses a strange language - There are obscure words such as ‘cookies’ and ‘buffering’, but even more basic things that are simply part of our vocab - ‘upload’, ‘browser’, ‘URL’ can confuse the elderly.

6. The open culture of the Internet can be confusing - People from older generations often assume that all apps and content cost money, but it’s nice telling them that most things are free. Just make sure they check the fine print on if stuff is free.

7. Personal information online is scary - This is a big concern for older people. It’s important to explain to them that security for customers is a central part of internet businesses, and to talk them through any necessary precautions.

8. Battery life is a new worry - A lot of older technology users think you have to keep devices plugged in all the time, rather than just charge them when battery life is low. Just talk them through this, and let them know that they don’t have to turn off their device between uses or charges.

9. Technology is always changing - Technology is always changing, and while this keeps younger people engaged, it can scare off older users.

10. They don’t want to ask for help - Having a younger teacher in a whole new world can be a difficult experience for older people, so they often hesitate about asking questions for fear of being a nuisance, looking silly or getting a patronising response. Put yourself in their shoes, because the chances are that they won’t always say when they find something confusing.

[effectsoftheinternet]

Development and Aging on the Internet pt 2

Okay, so we now know how technology benefits younger people, but what about the benefits for the elderly? Turns out that there are a lot of positives there too. There have been studies showing that when the elderly use the internet, they have higher social support, reduced loneliness, higher life satisfaction, and improved psychological well-being. Additionally, online literacy can help prevent cognitive decline in the elderly. So, again, there are a ton of benefits to the elderly using the internet.

A Pew Research study titled “Older Adults and Technology Use” showed that while the number of seniors using technology is increasing, it is still below the national average. Here are some of their findings:

Internet and broadband adoption rates among seniors are steadily increasing, but still well below the national average: The national average is around 86%, and the rate among seniors is at around 59%, which is higher than the 53% in 2012

Younger, higher-income, and more highly educated seniors use the internet and broadband at rates approaching the general population: those in their mid- to late 60’s are at about 74% for going online (65% having broadband at home), higher-income seniors are at 90% for going online and 82% have broadband at home, and elderly college graduates have an 87% rate of being online with 76% of them having broadband at home

A substantial majority of seniors now own cell phones, but smartphones remain rare within the 65-and-older population: 77% of seniors now own smartphones compared to 91% national average, but just 18% of seniors have smartphone compared to the national rate of 55%

As is the case in the population as a whole, tablets and e-book readers are primarily “elite” devices among older adults: 18% of seniors own an e-reader (24% national average), and 18% own a tablet (34% national average)

46% of online seniors use social networking sites, but just 6% use Twitter

As is the case for the online population as a whole, older women are more likely than older men to use social networking sites: 52% of elderly female internet users use social media compared to 39% of elderly male internet users

Social networking site usage is also more common among the younger cohort of seniors, and adoption drops off dramatically after age 80: only 27% of internet users over age 80 use social media opposed to 54% of seniors aged 65-69

Many seniors face physical challenges (such as physical conditions or health issues) to using new digital devices

Most older adults say they would need assistance learning how to use new devices and digital services: 18% of seniors felt comfortable learning a new device on their own, but 77% said they would need help learning

Once online, most seniors make the internet a daily part of their lives and view it in a positive light. Non-users are divided on the relative merits of going online: 79% of users think that the internet positively impacts their life, while only 48% of non-users agree

Older social networking site users socialize more frequently with friends and family members than do non-users: 81% of internet and social media users, 71% of internet but not social media users, and 63 of non-users socialize with others on a daily or near-daily basis

Therefore, while internet and technology provide a lot of positive benefits for seniors, they fall behind the national average for how many people use technology. Are there ways that we can get these people to be using the internet more? Definitely! Check back tomorrow!

[effectsoftheinternet]

Development and Aging on the Internet pt 1

The internet is beneficial to every age group that uses it. Yes, even small children and the elderly. How exactly do these age groups benefit? Well, I’m here to answer that question.

There is this fun article by a man named Dean Burnett. It’s called “Toddlers Pose a Serious Risk to Smartphones and Tablets”.I suggest going and checking it out. It’s pretty cute, and relatively short.

Moving on from that, how does technology actually benefit children? I’m so used to hearing people (generally older people) complain about how technology is rotting the brains of children, and how kids need to go outside and play, not spend all day inside playing on a phone or tablet. With all of this negativity, it’s sometimes hard to remember that there are actually a lot of benefits to kids and adolescents using technology.

Toddlers can learn new words just as well through Skype calls as they can in face-to-face conversations

Children develop their reading skills just as well (and sometimes better) by using interactive, talking books as by working one-on-one with an adult and paper copy books

Grade school kids who spend more time online report feeling less lonely

Grade school kids who spend more time online improve their reading skills

Grade school kids who spend more time playing online videogames have improved visual-spatial skills

Amount of time spent on the internet does not significantly determine how lonely adolescents feel, but perceived lack of family support does

A majority of teens have had social media experiences that make them feel good about themselves

Significantly fewer teens are bullied online than are bullied in real life

First-year college students report feeling less adrift if they can stay in touch with their high school friends

Children of all ages that play prosocial video games are more likely to empathize and help in real life

If there are so many benefits to children using technology, why don’t we hear more about them? The answer is that there is a lot of reasons. Some of those are:

We always fear new technology

The media thinks we want to see stories about technology ruining kids

There is a universal sense that kids are vulnerable and need to be protected

Socializing on the internet used to be scary

Since few people were on the internet in the 90’s, those who were were probably loners, and therefore lonely

None of these reasons are very good anymore, though the fearing new technology was never a good reason. I guess some of them used to be okay reasons, like the whole idea of socializing being scary once upon a time. Now, there are so many ways to make socializing safer.

Overall, as you can see, there are actually a lot of benefits to kids using technology, we just don’t hear about them.

[effectsoftheinternet]

Judgement and Decision Making on the Internet pt 4

This assignment was another one of our group chats. To prepare, we had to watch a lecture video that our professor made. The main point was that there are three primary decision making tools that we use.

The Representativeness Heuristic is used when we make judgments about the probability of an event that we are uncertain about. One example that was given was how we base our opinions off of online reviews. We tend to think that something with 4.8 stars (with 5 reviews) is better than something with 4.5 stars (with 100 reviews). In all reality, the second product provides a more reliable review, but we don’t always see it like that.

The Availability Heuristic is another heuristic we use. This one refers to the salience of an idea or event, with more salient ideas being more readily available to our minds. For example, when people see pictures of teens drinking on Facebook, they tend to overestimate the amount of teens who drink. When people see a lot of pictures of people on vacation, people tend to overestimate how many people go on vacations.

The Anchoring & Adjustment Heuristic is the last decision making tool that we commonly use. We use a starting point, an anchor, and then adjust our decision based on other points or options. An example of this is shipping with Amazon Prime. Amazon Prime offers free two day shipping, but they also provide other shipping options. We can pay extra for one day shipping, or we can choose a slower shipping speed but receive credit for another thing on Amazon. Based of the starting point, two day shipping, we adjust our decision on the other shipping speeds to determine the best deal.

[effectsoftheinternet]

Judgment and Decision Making on the Internet pt 3

Our next assignment for the week was just another fun little activity. We had to find a product on Amazon that had fun and/or satirical reviews. There were a lot of different products including the BIC Cristal For Her Ball Pen, 1.0mm, Black, 16ct, the Hutzler 571 Banana Slicer, a  Horse Head Mask, Tuscan Dairy Whole Vitamin D Milk, Gallon, 128 oz, and a AutoExec Wheelmate Steering Wheel Attachable Work Surface Tray.

The product I chose to look at was a UFO Detector. There were some really funny comments and reviews of the product. Here are some of the best ones.

Maybe the battery’s dead?:

I'm literally inside of a UFO right now, thing's just sitting there.

One Star is Too Much for This Product:

I don't know if this is a scam or if mine was broken, but it doesn't work and I am still getting abducted by UFO's on a regular basis.

Works TOO well!:

This product is lovely. It goes off every time that an alien is in the vicinity. The only problem is I can't seem to find a way to turn it off. It's rather too much when my friend John Smith comes over. He was trying to show me this lovely old police box, but this alarm would not shut off long enough for him to explain what it was that he was showing me. He must have some alien powder on him or something. I don't need my friends disturbed because this thing thinks their an alien! It would be especially bad because John has volunteered to take me on an adventure to "see the stars" (I think he's taking me to a planetarium.)

[effectsoftheinternet]

Judgment and Decision Making on the Internet pt 2

How trustful is Wikipedia? How about that rumor you saw on Facebook? Should you click on that article that, even though it is clearly clickbait, because it sounds interesting?

These were our three topics of choice for our assignment. I chose the topic “Should you believe that rumor”. After reading a little bit about Snopes’ background, we had to figure out how to use the website, which wasn’t that hard to do. Then, using a rumor we had seen on social media, we had to look it up on Snopes to figure out how much truth was in the rumor.

I chose to read the Snopes article “Was a South African Restaurant Shut Down for Serving Human Meat?” The first time I saw this rumor was on Facebook. I’m part of a group for a true crime podcast that I listen to (if you like podcasts and true crime, check out My Favorite Murder), and somebody had posted something about this, though she never listed any sources. The rumor is that a restaurant in Pretoria, South Africa called Rose Kitchen was shut down for serving human meat to customers. Snopes showed that this rumor is completely false. The rumor could be tracked back to other articles and it’s likely that the rumor came about by a mixture of two articles: a 2013 article of two human skulls being found in a Nigerian hotel room and a tabloid story of a restaurant serving human meat.

So what about the other two topics? Well, why it is true that anyone can go in and update Wikipedia articles, overall, Wikipedia is pretty accurate. One study showed it being extremely reliable when it came to information on reading disorders. If nothing else, you can use Wikipedia’s sources when doing your own research. I’ve done that enough times.

Clickbait formed around gossip really is an awful thing. Most of the time, the stories or pictures are sent around without the person’s consent. In a way, it’s a form of cyberbullying. Every time we click on it, even if we don’t send it on, it ends up providing us with more and more gossip and clickbait.