This is just bound to get the old “cause or reaction” debate rolling again, but what’s an academic forum without a bit of verbal slogging? Personally I think that while the net provides us with a new space for social interaction I could just as easily use this time to go start a conversation with a neighbour, or even my wife! I’m frequently labelled optimistic in my views on and about humanity because I believe that we still have the desire to form relationships on the basis of “real” (unreplaceable by virtual one-on-one…) contact despite the overwhelming, socially constructed fears that enshroud the process. Sure, as one of the final places in our world were truly democratic expression is freely available to most, cyberspace is invaluable but human interaction is healthiest the good old fashioned way… despite its occasional pitfall.
I doubt you’ll mind if I don’t cite the gaggle of isolation and dependency studies that back this view up… or point to the herd of ‘modern’ neuroses that the Internet is often associated with.
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