Can+Generation+Y+Keep+Up+With+Ever-changing+Technology?

Name: Ashley Bader Student number: 08331707 Tutor's Name: Emily Mann

Topic How Healthy is Generation Y? With the constant changes of technology, is generation y becoming less communicable in a face-to-face environment? Technology is changing so fast that it is difficult to keep up with. We are preparing ourselves for things before they happen.

"Technology - Changes"

media type="youtube" key="x-9FaJPhFxQ" height="315" width="420"

Artefact This artefact shows surprising and confronting statistics which show the current technological advances and other sociological factors in relation to generation y. These statistics vary from current geographical populations to future estimations of a single computer’s computational capabilities. For example, the “years it took to reach a market audience of 50 million”. The artefact refers to itself throughout the video as a “Did you know?” The statistics shown throughout this artefact are also reinforced with brief statements which apply them to current behavioural actions being undertaken by both the current working generation and generation y. All of these behavioural actions directly affect the development of generation y.
 * Radio – 38 years
 * Television – 13 years
 * Internet – 4 years
 * iPod – 3 years
 * Facebook – 2 years

Public Health Issue With the introduction of all the new technologies and simulative computing systems, health issues are on the rise. People are not exercising as often which is resulting in increased rates of obesity, heart disease, type 2 diabetes and many other life altering problems.  Also the increased use of technology is speculated to be reducing the social development skills of generation y. Some sociologists argue that the constant use of technology will result in reduced social ability and that generation y will not be able to function as well as part generations when placed into a face-to-face environment (this is shown within the YouTube clip below). All of these problems are contributing to reduced quality of life and may result in a shortened life expectancy for generation y.

media type="youtube" key="Hcc85yBqOZ0" height="315" width="420"

Literature Review With the increased rise of technology available and the increased amount of technology being used, there is much speculation about whether or not this increased amount of technology usage is beneficial to the people that are using it. There are two main arguments that have developed. The first being that the increased amount of technology is beneficial and that the persons using it are increasing their reading levels and that the internet is educating readers faster than ever before. The second argument, the one which this piece will be focusing on, is that which believes that technology is detrimental to the social development of the younger generations; in this circumstance generation y.

Technology, being the application of scientific knowledge for practical purposes, has been advancing since the dawn of man; from Feudalism in Medieval Europe to the newly found World Wide Web. The pieces of literature being assessed argue that past introductions of technological devices have lowered social standards and that new devices in the present may also result in reduced free time and more time spent lounging around on technology. For example, in the 1950’s and 1960’s the introduction of the television saw other media sources reducing usage levels by two and a half hours when the contrasting device (television) increased by approximately ten hours per week. Also people dropped their hourly participation in activities such as sleep, grooming, laundry etc. Then the introduction of the internet saw similar results. The results found that people who are internet users worked on average 6 hours less per week than those who were non-users. This shows that the introduction of the internet has in some situations resulted in a changed social environment.

Currently, the internet is the largest source of information and is used daily by millions of people. With this newly found technology people are inclined to believe everything that they read. However, the internet is not the most trustworthy source of information and anyone can create a webpage and add to the infinite amount of information available. This means that the information out there is not always correct. This is dangerous to society, especially now that people use the internet for almost everything. For example, Dr Google, Dr Google is when a person “googles” their symptoms and finds what they then believe their illness is online. This self-diagnosis then leads to incorrect treatment or in some cases panic and depression. Not only can technology induce mental disorders such as depression and anxiety, it can also cause physical disorders too. Since the introduction of resources such as TV and the internet, physical disorders in relation to exercise have increased. Some of the most commonly known of these health problems that have been rising are things such as obesity rates, the number of people living with type 2 diabetes, number of heart disease cases, decreased cardiovascular health and so much more. Health experts and physicians have been arguing that the constant lounging around whilst watching television and sitting at the computer screen is resulting in people reducing their weekly amount of exercise. This has then led to campaigns such as the find your 30, a campaign encouraging people to exercise for at least 30 minutes a day. However, these campaigns are put off by the constant bombardment of fast food commercials and commercials in relation to the health of the individual.

Most of the literature pieces shown are easy to agree with as they put forward a solid argument showing how the laziness that is brought on by technology is resulting in the dramatic health changes. However, some of them briefly mention the beneficial side of technology; things such as medical advances, transportation, communication, etc. These technological advances are ones which have changed the way in which people approach a situation and the way in which people can sustain a healthy lifestyle. This arises the question of whether or not the benefits of technology out weight the negative connotations. Overall, the general uses of technology such as mobile phones, internet, televisions and so on, are causing social and health problems which will then be passed on to future generations. However, the technological advances in medicine, transport and other beneficial circumstances are able to provide an expanding hope for healthier lifestyles and continue to improve quality of life.

Social and Cultural Analysis The internet has become one of the most common ways to communicate within social circumstances. The most common social networking site is Facebook. This site has billions of participating people, groups, pages and more. Other internet sites which have become household names are things like Google. Google, as shown in the humorous video below, is the number one search engine on the internet. From Google, it is believed, that you can get to any site on the internet. This humorous video below shows the way in which some people see the internet, it mentions how people found it funny that the internet was first released and that the internet was expected to never succeed.

The internet and other technological advances are currently an extremely highly demanded mode of communication. People rely on technology to stay in touch with friends and family, do their shopping, banking, charity work and so much more. Discussing technology and the influence that it is having on social development and how society is structured. The people of today need to be educated about proper healthy lifestyles and participating in healthy eating and regular exercise. Commonly related health risks such as diabetes, heart disease, obesity and circulation. Many health articles have been written on this topic and have tried to specify that people must find a balance. One of the articles “Technology Shaping Generation Y?” discusses the possibility of parents taking a more involved role in maintaining computing levels and technology use by generation y. This article goes on to discuss how reliant we are on technology, pointing out that the average American spends approximately 10 hours and 45 minutes plugged in. Whether that be sitting on the computer on Facebook, having their phone in their hand to text or call someone, or to be sitting in front of the television. Another article that discusses generation y and their obsession with technology is “Gen Y finds life goes on without the gadgets”. This article discusses an experiment where four generation y students were not to use any of their gadgets or technology for a single week. Sounds easy enough? However, all four participants at one point cheated and used technology (communication devices). This study found that they were so reliant on technology that they no longer knew how to organise social gatherings and that they were then left alone at home. This study showed that generation y is already co-dependant when it comes to technology and that the current technological devices in circulation are possibly the only thing that keeps generation y sociable. This video however, shows the negative aspects that are associated with technological advance. It specifies human emotions that can be taken by technological devices such as Google. As stated in the Blaakyboi (2009) YouTube video “has anybody misspelt something on Google lately and seen the … tone that it takes? Did you mean…..” This shows that although used in a humorous situation, we believe that the internet can simulate life.

media type="youtube" key="Nobm5m5pbpg" height="315" width="560"

Analysis of the Artefact and Own Learning Reflection The artefact presented is good for this topic as it briefly sums up so many different affects that technology has had on society. It shows so many eye opening statistics and it makes the way in which society is seen by the viewer get questioned. This artefact has made me relook all of the items that I once coveted and now see as devices that are detrimental to my development. All of these statistics have shown me that our world aims to be so individual, yet we are all so connected that we are all exactly the same. By working on this piece I have found that technology is a tool, not a hobby. You can use it to study, organise social events, etc. but you cannot use it to substitute all of these things. I have learnt that in order to maintain a healthy lifestyle in the new era of technology I will have to manage my time much better and find the perfect balance between technology and life. This information will very much affect my future learning and thinking process, as now I see that technology is not as useful and beneficial as I once thought. Now my thinking process will be more hands on and active as opposed to “Google-ing” things.

References Mark Fiore (2009, July 16). Technology. Retrieved from []

Lee Turtle 2000 (2008, November 7). Technology – Changes. Retrieved from []

Blaakyboi (2009, July 24). Arg Barker Internet. Retrieved from []

Pitcher, G. (2008). Generation Y: When geek became chic. Retrieved from [|www.oeeo.wa.gov.au/documents/diversitybizz/0810/gen_y.pdf]

Technology Shaping Generation Y? (2010). Retrieved from []

Olding, R. (2011). Generation Y finds life goes on without the gadgets. Retrieved from []

Eisenberg, R. (2011). Gen Y forces retailers to keep up with technology, new stuff. Retrieved from [|http://abcnews.go.com/Business/gen-forces-retailers-technology-stuff/story?id=8563997#.TrISxvTDVtM]

Francis, S. (2011). Technology and Social Change. Green Technology, an A-to-Z Guide. Retrieved from []

Ghorbani, N. R. & Heidari, R. N. (2009). Effects of Information and Communication Technology on Youth’s Health Knowledge. Asia-Pacific Journal of Public Health, 23, 363-368. doi: 10.1177/1010539509340435

Robinson, J. (2010). IT, TV and Time Displacement: What Alexander Szalai Anticipated but Couldn’t Know. SpringerLink, 101 (2), 193-206. doi: 10.1007/s11205-010-9653-0

= Goodman, K. W. (2010). Ethics, information technology, and public health: new challenges for the clinician-patient relationship. Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics, 38 (1), 58-64. Retrieved from [] =

Creativity Research; Scientists at University of Oregon publish research in creativity research. (2010). Science Letter, 3248. Retrieved from [|http://gateway.library.qut.edu.au/login?url=http://search.proquest.com.ezp01.library.qut.edu.au/docview/517780498?accountid=1] [|3380]

Comments

Is the price we pay for consumer-obsession and individualism worth it? I think you have done a really good job here. I particularly enjoyed reading the section on the rates of narcissism in youths. It is true that contemporary youths are very self obsessed and that the find themselves to be of major importance. I personally can say that at times I have had a quiet thought where I believe I could do better or that I deserved something over someone else. Very well done :)

Mental Health and the affects of Cyber Bullying in Teenage Australians I found this to be a shocking read. I was most surprised at the statistics discussing the number of teenagers with mental health disorders. Also the artefact shows the way in which we have subconsciously dealt with the problem of mental health. This song is well known, liked, and yet expresses a message that is not often expressed to the people which this song targets. Overall, fantastic topic and great work :D