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Alex TrowellHull School of Art & DesignFD Digital Design & DevelopmentThe Open UniversityThe impact of Instant Messaging on society? The impact of Instant Messaging on society?The intention of this essay is to explore and examine the question; has instant messaging helped or hindered society. Three separate theories discussing Instant Messaging will be studied to show beliefs and general opinion on the question. Gaining research from a number of sources this document will portray masses of ideas and quotes surrounding the three theories. Facts and reports regarding mental health and the effect instant messaging can have will be displayed also and linked back to the original question. Concluding this essay there will be a weigh up of all evidence provided and offer criticism and praise of arguments and may propose a final opinion on the question.Instant Messaging has come a long way from the 1960's initially changing a lot through the late 1990's and then becoming part of the day to day life to date. This development of Instant Messaging coincides in with my first theory kick-starting with a speech from Simon Sinek regarding millennials and comparing them against previous generations and the impact mobiles and technology have had – Instant Messaging being involved in this. ‘Apparently, millennials as a group of people, which are those born from approximately 1984 and after, are tough to manage. They are accused of being entitled and narcissistic, self-interested, unfocused and lazy - but entitled is the big one’ (Sinek 2017). In this theory, it will be highlighted the link between millennials and previous generations and how instant messaging has had its effect. It is also said ‘The other problem to compound it is we are growing up in a Facebook/Instagram world, in other words, we are good at putting filters on things. We’re good at showing people that life is amazing even though I am depressed…' (Sinek 2017) This is crucial to the negative argument about Instant Messaging with Facebook/Instagram being the major Instant Messengers that millennials use it could be a factor in two types of research the first being a survey which stated depression has increased by ‘450% since 1987’ (Tunwell 2017). This is an astonishing number even considering more acceptance and awareness about the illness today it is hard to argue the impact of Instant Messaging sites like Facebook and Instagram. The latter study shares a 66% increase in ADHD in the last 10 years which is spoken about by Simon ‘We do not have an increase in ADD/ADHD. We simply have misdiagnosis. We have a generation (and possibly future generations) who are addicted to technology and as a result, are presenting as ADD/ADHD’ (Sinek 2017). ‘To add to the argument about negativity surrounding Instant Messaging you have to look at the effect the creation has had on society and people in general with one main assumption being that people do not interact with one another in person anymore instead opting to choose Instant Messaging this can contribute to the lack of meaningful relationships people have with one another and also project loneliness and insecurities on the mind. ‘They might be in a job for eight months and then question why they’re not making an impact’. ‘You want to go on a date. You don’t even have to learn how to be like, ‘Hey…’ You don’t have to be the uncomfortable one who says ‘Yes’ when you mean ‘No’ and ‘No’ when you mean ‘Yes’. Swipe right. Bang! I’m a stud...everything you want you can have instantaneously, everything you want – instant gratification’ (Sinek 2017) This quote by Sinek sums up the influence Instant Messaging has had in society in regard to relationships and socially. Conflicting the negativity surrounding Instant Messaging and social media’s rise you have to look at the benefits in the 21st century. The word ‘instant’ is key and that is so valuable for businesses with a society that wants everything instantly that predominantly support and advice. Live Chat is fundamentally valuable to most businesses. ‘Live Chat is used by over 21,000 paid customers from 118 countries’ (Wikipedia 2017). BoldChat a business consulting company based in America who did a report back in 2012 called ‘Live Chat Effectiveness 2012’ showed a significant growth across the US and UK with more than ‘65% of American online shoppers having engaged in a live chat, up from 50.4% during 2009. The figure is slightly lower in the UK but still growing at 53%, up from 41% in 2011’ (BoldChat 2012) which is still a strong rise in the space of a year contrasting the American statistics. Email does still remain the most popular way of contacting a business with ‘54% of Americans stating that this is their preference’ but Live Chat is definitely on the rise with 21% of online shoppers choosing this as their favoured option just falling behind Telephone which holds 24% of the votes. The USP of Live Chat is the instantaneous fashion that it holds and 79% of people who chose Live Chat as their preference to contacting a business said time is the key factor in the option they choose. This method of IM makes companies stand out to consumers if they are available to offer Live Chat on their websites and make customers feel more inclined to trust purchasing a product or service if they can contact the company instantly for advice or help with an issue before or after buying. In the study by BoldChat, people explain the reasoning behind choosing Live Chat as a preference saying that you can multi-task while getting technical support or better information than if they emailed. It isn't just internally that IM can be positive for companies it is a great boost for the employees saving time which transpires into money saved. Most companies internally will be spaced out and have various numbers of floors and even offices spread out nationally or internationally this is when IM comes into play. With Instant Messaging easily available on most people's mobiles it becomes a very popular and more streamlined prospect to contact other employees via IM rather than traveling to see them or other forms of contact.The final opinion that will be shared regarding the subject of this essay is a reflection of the negativity cast about Instant Messaging within social media and highlight the positivity that it has had on people and society. To start there has to be a discussion on long distance relationships and how they have always been a struggle for families, friends or relationships within previous times. In today's new media generation, you can speak to anyone you wish via IM deemed they have the necessary equipment to access the same IM software as you. The telephone has been around since the early 1900's but with today's technology, the engagement and interaction you have with the other person has no similarity whatsoever to the telephone generation. A leading IM software people use to speak with each other around the globe is Skype which currently has 74 million active users around the world with 560 million people being reported to have used Skype at least once (Statistic Brain 2016). Skype is an application founded in 2003 which is available on all desktop operating systems and mobile phones and allows the user to instantly message someone or video chat. Skype is free and the most popular video calling application in the world it used both in business and personally, being mainly popular in business for the fact you can add multiple people in a video call at once (Wikipedia 2017). One more use of Skype is in media it's used on news programs such as BBC and Sky and makes communication with the reporting journalists around the globe a lot more interactive for the viewer. YouTube also holds many videos of interviews and podcasts where the two people are interacting via video chat with the quality of the call being such good quality that the shows are seamlessly smooth. Creators then have a broader field of guests they can have on with travel time, not a burden held on either the interviewee or guest saving money which can be invested further into the show or media form, therefore, is a very positive influence on new media. Linking back to the telephone and a potential argument that it’s not far of Skype and other IM’s barring the video feature the quality of IM has to be argued strongly with phone call quality to this date still being inconsistent depending on location. Cost is the in-excusable strength that IM has over its competitor the telephone with most people being aware that phone calls aren’t free and can be considerably expensive depending on the length of time on the phone. To conclude this essay, it has to be said each argument does have its internal pros and cons. Simon Sinek's theory about the relationship between mental health and technology does echo importance on how it can be damaging for society but there has to be an understanding on different personalities and with some people having addictive traits instant messaging can be abused and take hold of someone’s life negatively. That being said it would not be fair to disregard all the positives with Instant Messaging for businesses and individuals just because there is a small fraction of negativity shadowing this form of new media. This essay shares the negative affect IM has had but does deliver the opinion that Instant Messaging in whole is a positive creation and a helpful, cost-effective tool for a wide variety of uses. Therefore, that being said the overall opinion after discussing these theories is that Instant Messaging has had a positive effect on society and will carry on assisting society positively in many different aspects. ReferencesSinek, S. (2017).?Transcript of Simon Sinek Millennials in the Workplace Interview.?Available: . Last accessed 12th Nov 2017.Sinek, S. (2017).?Transcript of Simon Sinek Millennials in the Workplace Interview.?Available: . Last accessed 12th Nov 2017.Tunwell, B. (2017).?An Introduction to The Mental Health Crisis. Available: . Last accessed 15th Nov 2017.Sinek, S. (2017).?Transcript of Simon Sinek Millennials in the Workplace Interview.?Available: . Last accessed 12th Nov 2017.Sinek, S. (2017).?Transcript of Simon Sinek Millennials in the Workplace Interview.?Available: . Last accessed 12th Nov 2017.Wikipedia. (2017).?LiveChat.?Available: . Last accessed 14th Nov 2017.BoldChat. (2012).?Live Chat Effectiveness.?Available: . Last accessed 14th Nov 2017.Statistic Brain. (2016).?Skype Company Statistics.?Available: . Last accessed 12th Nov 2017.Wikipedia. (2017).?Skype.?Available: . Last accessed 12th Nov 2017.? ................
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