Technology's connection to society is multifaceted, constantly evolving, and inextricable from all aspects of modern existence. With the ongoing advancement of technology, it has revolutionized the way people communicate, work, learn, and even imagine themselves. Aside from creating immense goodness, these changes have also come along with their own host of problems and required significant ethics issues.
Perhaps the profoundest impact of technology has been on communication. Social networking websites, mobile phones, and messaging have revolutionized the way people communicate with each other. Distance no longer plays a role in maintaining contact, and information is communicated faster than ever. This has generated global consciousness and community but has also been the source of issues like misinformation, cyberbullying, and reduced face-to-face social interaction. Many people today rely on electronic communication as their main means of communication, which has changed social expectations and norms.
In the workplace, artificial intelligence and automation have increased productivity and efficiency but also disruption. Activities that were once requiring human labor are now being performed by machines, and this has come with economic development and job loss. This technological shift forces society to grapple with questions of the future of work, income inequality, and how new education and skills models would be needed.
Education has likewise been a field heavily impacted by technology. Electronic textbooks, virtual classrooms, and online learning sites have made it possible for individuals worldwide to be more readily accessible to education. Nevertheless, the digital divide remains central to the issue, and many communities lack the devices and connectivity necessary to play a full role. The more society relies on digital technologies to learn, the more that the gap between the digitally included and excluded is likely to widen, further entrenching current divides.
Healthcare has also undergone tremendous technological changes. From telemedicine to robotic surgery, technology has boosted patient care and expanded the reach of health care. Health apps and wearable fitness trackers allow an individual to monitor his or her condition in real time, so that individuals can take control of their own health. But all this is accompanied by privacy concerns, data security, and ethics of emerging technologies like gene editing.
At a more general level, society's engagement with technology is an articulation of underlying values and priorities. The speeding-up rate of innovation tends to overtake legislation and regulation creation, so society ends up playing catch-up with issues surrounding data ethics, spying, and the control of public discourse by tech companies. There is always tension between a readiness to embrace innovation and safeguarding human-centered values.
Finally, technology is not good or bad; it is a tool determined by how society chooses to use it. The relationship between society and technology is two-way—technology changes society, but society controls the path of technological progress. Looking ahead, we need to be responsible in developing technology so that innovation serves the greater good and maintains common ethical standards. This entails the development of discussion, participatory policy-making, and a commitment to using technology not merely to propel convenience or profit, but to advance equality, justice, and human flourishing.
For me, I have a very significant connection with technology because the apps that I use on my phone are some of the main apps that I use to communicate with my parents, friends, etc. Not only do I use my phone to communicate with whoever I need to, but I am also a videographer as a part time job, filming athletics for not only High Point D1 teams but for local high school, club, and MLS Next teams creating highlight reels for players to send in to college coaches to get noticed as athletes. I have been heavily surrounded by technology my whole life and have used all of it to have a positive impact on other people. If I were applying for a job and my employer had to look at my social media as a background check I feel like I would have a good impact from what they see because besides my film account on Instagram, I also have my own personal account where I have posted pictures with me and my friends and then also pictures of myself playing sports since I was a student athlete up until my freshman year at High Point.
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