It seems unthinkable doesn’t it that advances in technology, which has transformed all our lives in so many positive ways could have a serious downside.
Well according to one psychologist, we are more depressed today than ever as a result of advancing technology.
The reason, says Daniel Goleman, is that basically we are being forced into constantly checking and sending emails and text messages, trying to keep up with status updates on social networking sites and feeling pressured into getting the latest SmartPhone, notebook or gadget.
Goleman reckons we have to do something to stop technology from taking over our lives. Somehow I just can’t see what, technology is an integral part of all our lives so who on earth is going to go back to snail mail, ditch their mobile and withdraw from the online social networks that have become such a part of modern day living?
According to Goleman, who wrote in the New Scientist Magazine, we need to adopt a balanced approached to technology which involves autonomy, competence, relatedness and critical thinking. That makes sense.
By this he presumably means that we need to be in control of our own lives instead of technology controlling us. Ok so we have to switch off our mobiles from time to time and resist the temptation to take our laptops to bed, I can do that.
It also means being able to separate work and pleasure and place boundaries around what we do and in doing so remain close to our loved ones instead of separated by a computer screen all the time. I suppose I could stop emailing the family when they’re only next door.
Finally we have to be able to recognise that advertisements are there to cajole us into having the latest gadget or whatever else and so we must realise that we don’t have to buy into them.
If we can manage that then technology is undoubtedly a great thing that we can embrace wholeheartedly.
Ok so you’ll always get the odd person who shuns it completely and wants to retreat into a hermitic lifestyle of sorts away from ring tones, message alerts, geeky bleeping gadgets and glaring computer screens but not even they will be able to escape entirely as there’s hardly a place on the planet where Wi-Fi doesn’t exist or where someone nearby will have a computer device or mobile phone of some kind.
Love it or loathe it, technology is here to stay so the ideal is surely to connect with technology but just not too much.
