Blogging About Communication

THE COMMUNICATION MIX

Our focus this week is on processing your communication experiences in the physical world and online.

FIVE BIG QUESTIONS

Begin by asking yourself how you’re really doing when you move between the real world and the world of social networking. Take a few moments to think about how you change—how your identity changes—as you navigate back and forth. To help you, write down your answers to these questions:

1, Which connections feel stronger—those you work on in the physical world or those you build online? Which domain do you devote more of your time to? (Actually, clock yourself)

            2. Which connections feel more authentic?

            3. Which connections contribute to your experiencing more FOMO?

4. In which realm do you think those you connect with view you more accurately? More positively?

5. Ask at least two individuals you interacted with in person this week to provide you with three adjectives they would use to describe their face-to-face interactions with you. Then ask two individuals you only engaged with online to do the same.

DEBRIEF

What do answers suggest about the nature of your connections in the physical world and the digital world?  What do they suggest about your satisfaction and the satisfaction of your communication partner in each realm?  Then ask yourself if you are you making the right communication choices. In other words, do you choose to text or engage someone on social media when it would be better to be in the same physical space? Do you meet in person when it might be wiser to maintain some distance? Communication is a delicate balance. Is yours in synch with your needs? Do you spend more time on social media than you should? Are you giving your face-to-face abilities sufficient exercise? Having the communication scale imbalanced in favor of social media can lead to experiencing more anxiety than is healthy. It also can impede development of social skills.

YOUR GAME PLAN

This week’s game plan is to focus on achieving better balance in your communication exchanges with others.  Pay attention to making more time to connect with people in person. Doing so will deepen the nature of your relationship. Being face-to-face facilitates more accurate interpretation of thoughts and feelings. It also allows for the creation of stronger bonds.

CAN A BOT REPLACE YOUR FRIEND OR LOVE INTEREST?

AI is changing the scope and nature of our interpersonal relationships and what we consider human communication to be.

HUMAN-AI RELATIONSHIPS

Can you imagine having a friendly or romantic relationship with an AI bot? Some researchers contend that developing a relationship with a bot can provide those who are lonely much needed companionship. Indeed, in nursing homes robots are being used to address the needs of the older residents including engaging them in social interaction providing them comfort, and addressing their emotional health. The thinking is that relating to the robot will reduce their anxiety, loneliness, and improve their mood. Not just the aged are thought to benefit from experiencing a human-AI relationship. Individuals who are neither in nursing homes nor infirm, have also been known to seek out a human-bot connection as a means of reducing their loneliness and feelings of social isolation.

REALITY AND ILLUSION

The question is, however, is what ensues between a human and a bot, a relationship or the illusion of a relationship? Will engaging a bot in conversation erode the ability or desire to engage in human-to-human interaction? In general, bots have been found to be more reinforcing (even of negative thought patterns), and more self-enhancing (telling you what you want to hear), making the interactions you share with them more agreeable. Individuals have even fallen for their AI companion like Replica, spending significant time on virtual dates with them, in lieu of devoting time to their realworld relationships.

Thus, it’s not all good. Bots have been programmed to mimic human empathy and promote feelings of attachment, which can end up limiting genuine human contact, and in the end, exacerbate feelings of loneliness. And what about personal contact—human touch—Is it replaceable? Years back studies revealed that infants deprived of human touch failed to thrive. Human touch is important for both physical and emotional wellbeing. It promotes bonding and decreases feelings of stress. While bots can simulate elements of human interaction, they cannot yet replicate human touch.

WHAT IS HUMAN TOUCH?

What bots can do is provide personalized, emotionally responsive reactions. This leaves us to ask this question: If a bot can’t yet simulate physical touch, might we need a new definition of touch in the 21^st century? Might human touch now be just a voice?

YOUR GAME PLAN

Explain if you think having a virtual companion would benefit you and other humans? Develop a list of services a bot could provide to supplement person-to-person contact, such as being used to eliminate boredom, and provide an empathetic ear. How might you employ a bot to encourage human interaction?