Staying connected with friends, family, acquaintances and even perfect strangers has never been easier. With one click or swipe you can like a friends photo, approve of their relationship or simply say hello. Connectivity and constant interaction has become especially important to college students.
Going to a big school like LSU means that every student crosses paths with thousands of different people every day, yet I, like so many others talk to less than ten different people each day. It is not that I do not have the opportunity to strike up a conversation with someone in line at Starbucks or the person sitting next to me on the bus in the morning, it is just that I and so many of my peers have become accustomed to living in a connected state of solitude. We would rather walk around hunched over constantly texting rather than interacting with the person walking next to us. However this new wave of constant connectivity is not all bad.
New advancements in technology have made it incredibly easy to stay in touch with people that you may not be able to have face to face interactions with. Now, using instant video technology, it has become easier than ever to talk with family and friends who live hundreds or even thousands of miles away. Through group messaging, friends who are separated by physical distance can have conversations as if they were all in the same room. Sharing pictures with family of important milestones allows relatives to share in important events even though were not physically able to be there.
For my photo essay, I decided to take a look at students both on and off campus over the course of three days to see exactly how technology impacts day to day interactions. I thought that all the hype about students living in a lonely yet connected existence was just a perception by those who did not grow up in the digital age. What I found is that we really are having very few fact to face interactions but we are staying connected in other ways that would not have been possible ten years ago.
Two roommates, Kim and Stephanie, proudly display all of the electronic devices they own. Total the pair has three computers, two tablets, a kindle and two phones. Both stated that they need to have at least two of these items with them to truly feel connected to the world.
Stephanie gets aggravated with Kim when she ignores Stephanie and responds to another friends text message instead.
With coffee in hand, Kristen takes a moment to check her messages while waiting to cross the street.
Three friends, each seperated by hundreds of miles chat through a group message as if they were all in the same room.
Best Friends Stphanie and Catherine spend quality time together browsing the internet and constantly checking their messages.
Two classmates silently check their social media feeds before class, completely oblivious to the happenings around them.
Before putting their phones away for a quiz, Kolbi, Margaret and Adam quickly scan through their social media feeds to make sure they are up to date.
Even though Katie is away at school, she is able to talk face to face with her dad who lives 300 miles away.
