Topic > How does technology influence younger generations...

How does technology influence young generations' perception of morality and the world? The advent of the Internet marked a revolutionary change for society, where massive amounts of information were easily and quickly accessible to any connected country. This digital revolution has given rise to monolithic digital communities that dominate the web and strongly influence the globe; Twitter helped young Belarusians organize flash protests against their authoritarian government in 2006, while WikiLeaks continues to serve as an international public clearinghouse for whistleblowers. But despite these resounding success stories, there is growing concern that there is an underlying problem with our digitally enhanced society, especially in the Western world. The digital revolution has sparked widespread debate about the influence of modern technology on younger generations, with experts fighting each other over whether the Internet is dulling or expanding young minds. This debate is not limited to education, but extends to questions of morality and perspective. Education issues are linked to a lack of cultural awareness and political activism, but worldviews are a separate and overall more serious problem for the next generation. As the Internet becomes more and more a part of our lives, young people retreat into the isolation of private social bubbles and transform reality into a remote abstract concept. Apathetic, amoral and disconnected young people in the Western world are spreading to replace older, active and socially engaged generations. Thanks to a society that is approaching the utopia (or dystopia) of ubiquitous computing, people can be connected 24/7/365. Ask the average teenager what their digital arsenal consists of… half of paper… and young volunteers. Once again these facts are authentic but not valid as evidence. An increase in teen volunteering is not necessarily the result of technology spreading knowledge. Peer pressure is much greater than before the digital age, because students are now in constant contact with their peers. As a result, trends spread very easily. More competitive higher education also mandates volunteer community work as an unwritten requirement for popular universities, toward which peer pressure pushes students. As a teenager, I know many people who pretend to do environmental volunteering to help the environment. But after asking them probing questions about why they are helping, their facade collapses and they end up parroting their organization's goals. They volunteer because they are forced to do so silently, not because they want to.