and the impact of technology on human relations SOCIAL INTERACTION

BY DEEPU NAIR

THE FUTURE OF

Social Interaction

Exchange

Cooperation

CompetitionCoercion

Conflict

• Goods• Services• Information

• Friendships• Education• Work

• Business• Sports

• Politics• Social Movements

• Wars• Crime

Human Relations

Social Interaction

Exchange

Cooperation

CompetitionCoercion

Conflict

Social Interaction

Social Interaction

Exchange

Cooperation

CompetitionCoercion

Conflict

Social Interaction

Social Interaction involves the processes by which people act and react in relation

to others, and is therefore the sum of the varied human relations that happen at the

individual level

Communication

Transportation Information

Technology

DEFINITIONThe application of scientific knowledge for practical purposes

In the future, human relationships will be radically changed by 3 main types of technologies…

Communication

Transportation Information

Technology

Social media is found at the confluence of the three

technologies. It also is the driving force in

the way that technology will affect human relations, and hence social interaction, in

10 years’ time.

Social Interaction

Exchange

Cooperation

CompetitionCoercion

Conflict

In the future, these key technologies will affect social interaction by radically changing the way we engage in these activities…

Technology

Over the next 10 years, human relations - and therefore social interaction – will have to increasingly confront 4 new realities as a result of technological progress

Social Interaction

‘Always On”

Diminished Privacy

New Boundaries

Changing Language

The Effects

“Always On”

Human relations will evolve given that human beings are ‘Always On’ . We are constantly connected to technological devices and social media: endless multitasking

This will be exacerbated by the roll-out of wearable technology (like Google glasses) and other innovations in the field of ubiquitous computing • Fabric computing• Battery miniaturization • Expanding network capacities

“Always On”

Ping - a social networking garment which connects the wearer to their social media accounts, wirelessly. By performing natural gestures — lifting the hood – the wearer can interact with friends on their social media accounts

“Always On”

case in point

David Riesman’s notion of the lonely crowd - people ‘surrounded’ by others, yet quintessentially isolated

For many users of mobile technology, people around them are equivalent to elevator music

While technology provides opportunities for people to communicate to one another it also gives us tools for building virtual walls

Constant multi tasking also diminishes the focus we can pay to any single activity, including human relations

“Always On”

consequences

New technologies will allow us unprecedented social connection, bringing many benefits

Yet it may cause us to spread ourselves too thin, and diminish the the quality of our social interaction

“Always On”

in 10 years’ time

Privacy

Probably… clothes, body language, manners, etc

Privacy

Your first day in class: What determines who you choose to interact with?

case in point

Now…Imagine you had access to immediate information about your new classmates thanks to your latest pair of Google glasses.

Privacy

How would that information affect your decision on who to interact with?

case in point

Bad credit Rating President of the Film Club

Mediocre GPAOn Financial Assistance

Privacy

Privacy

Erving Goffman’s idea of the public face – the carefully crafted image people display to others

The increasing (and instantaneous) access to information that people would otherwise guard - will lead to a public face that is less crafted and more realistic

consequences

Human relations will acquire a high degree of openness as it will be difficult to separate private interactions from public interactions (public face). People will be more comfortable with transparency in their relationships

Society will change its perception of acceptable behavior, with a greater tolerance for ‘loss of face’ (especially in Asia)

Will affect Coercion relations as well-Governments will (have to) be more transparent

Competition in business and politics will focus on uncovering private information – it will become an industry of its own

in 10 years’ time

Privacy

Privacy

Boundaries

Human relations are governed by boundaries- e.g. Competition in business is constrained by rules

Technology will lead to empowerment of the disenfranchised/changing of the rules- Major implications for competition, coercion and conflict

Boundaries

Greenpeace’s viral video campaign http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VaJjPRwExO8&feature=share&list=PL552425FDB59C1C05

Forced Nestle, Unilever and other large MNCs to stop buying palm oil from certain firms in Indonesia – by marshaling public opinion

Boundaries

case in point

Boundaries

Printing press– Storming of the Bastille

consequences

Social media – Tahir square

=

Boundaries

The power dynamics of social interaction will change as public opinion becomes a more valuable commodity

New technologies will also enable smaller actors to organize and mobilize support against traditionally ‘powerful actors’/authority.

There will be a growing importance accorded to community based mediation and moderation with regard to online conflict/coercion

in 10 years time

Language

DEFINITIONLanguage is the medium through which human relations are conducted, be it spoken or written language. A language is never fixed. It changes constantly, adapting to the changes in society’s needs.

Language

Mechanics of written text are viewed as less important; writing has increasingly become an instrument for recording informal speech rather than a form of linguistic representation

Language (both spoken and written) plays a reduced role as a social status marker

Internet communication will also see a stronger use of audio and video, as tools to create these components become easier and faster to use

Language

Convergence has its benefits

Enable Talk, a software solution that transforms sign language, into a form of verbal communication through sensor-equipped gloves and a mobile device.

Example of the convergence of Visual language with oral language

Language

case in point

Language

Currently, the overwhelmingly text and speech based nature of communication comes at the expense of social skills such as face-to-face contact and reading non-verbal cues.

However, with increased network capacities, and new technological advances that move away from the ‘text and speech’ paradigm of earlier technology, this may become less of an issue

consequences

Language

There will be conformity of language

Writing and speaking will continue to merge in order to effect this evolution, and the result will be a language that efficiently and creatively combines the characteristics and the technologies of both

Eventually, we will have multi-technology hybridity – writing, speech, and audio and visual elements meshed together – and this will require new learning and new adoption

in 10 years’ time

Conclusion

These four (technological) realities challenge our assumptions about human relations calling for us to rethink conventional notions about multitasking, transparency, individual empowerment and language.

Social Interaction

‘Always On”

Diminished Privacy

New Boundaries

Changing Language

Conclusion

In the next ten years, Social interaction will be profoundly transformed by these four new realties of human interaction.

This presentation is in response to the IE Business School admissions essay question :

How do you imagine social interaction within 10 years, taking into consideration the impact of technology on human relations?

By Deepu Nair