Internet and Young People Essay

The brains of young muckle growing up hyperconnected to the Internet might be wired variously from those of their elders, suggests a recent deal of technology experts, who were split on whether the newfangled wiring is desirable. Researchers from the Pew Research Center and Elon University recently conducted an opt-in, nonrandom, online cogitation of 1,021 technology stakeholders and critics. Participants were asked which of two predictions about teens and young adults seem more likely by 2020a scenario in which theyre savvy and productive, or one in which theyre hampered by impatience and shallowness.HR professionals might, as a result, have to change the ways in which they manage these younger grazeers.Some 55 part of survey participants agreed that the brains of multitasking young batch ordain be wired differently from the brains of those older than 35, in general for the better. They verbalise young people wont suffer notable cognitive shortcomings, and that they are ac complishment more and they are more adept at finding answers to deep questions, in part because theyre good at going online and finding collective intelligence.Some 42 percent of survey participants judge brain-wiring changes with banish results, including a thirst for instant gratification. They expect young people will not concur information they spend most of their energy sharing short social messages, being entertained, and being disconcert away from deep engagement with people and knowledge. They lack deep-thinking capabilities they lack face-to-face social skills and they depend in unhealthy ways on the Internet and mobile devices to function.Even some who chose the positive prediction said it was more their hope than their best guess, and a number of people said the true outcome will be a combination of both scenarios, according to the Pew-Elon survey report, published Feb. 29, 2012.While they were not offered a third option, some participants disagreed with the notion th at the wiring of young peoples brains will be different from previous generations wiring but thought Millennials thinking patterns probably will be.Game ChangeTeens and adults who grew up playing video games will have lasting problems with focus and perplexity, futurist author Marcel Bullinga commented in the survey.They find distraction while working, distraction while driving and distraction while talking to the neighbors. Parents and teachers will have to invest major time and efforts into solving this issue, he said, by helping young people learn to pry quiet contemplation without their mobile devices. All in all, I think the negative side effects can be healed, Bullinga added.Some of those surveyed illustrious that they themselves, as older adults, have compel highly connected to technology, with positive and negative results. Respondents included educators who noted a diminishment of critical thinking skills and attention spans among students.David Ellis, communications st udies director at Torontos York University, contends that multitasking hinders productivity, even for the very bright. Contrary to popular opinion, he doesnt see Millennials as effective users of digital tools.The idea that Millennials have a cognitive advantage all over their elders is based on myths about multitasking, the skill sets of digital natives and 24/7 tie, he commented in the survey. farthermost from having an edge in learning, I see Millennials as increasingly trapped by the imperatives of online socializing and the opportunities offered by their smart phones to communicate from any place, any time.HR experts already see refreshing and exasperating differences in Millennials in the workplace.Millennials are an interesting group of employees and very different from other generations, said Susan Heathfield, a Michigan-based attention consultant and business owner who writes the human resources section for About.com.Attachment to technology causes them to be on 24/7, s he told SHRM Online, adding that young workers wouldnt imagine going on vacation without a phone and e-mail access. Theyre likely to conduct most business on smart phones, she said. It creates this mentality where work and what is not work is flowing together. For example, she said, an employee might watch the NCAA basketball tournament on a computer at 11 a.m. and answer a colleagues e-mail at 11 p.m.Millennial employees are looking for for change and challenge. Boring is bad. They want their tasks changing all the time, Heathfield said. They want autonomy and reassurance. It just blows my mind watching how this batch of employees was raised, she said. They want lots of praise, lots of feedbackevery day. If you ignore their ideas, Whats your problem? My ideas are great. Their connectedness can lead to behavior that older colleagues consider rude, like texting during meetings.While Heathfield didnt want to generalize, she noted that Millennials grew up working in teams and they d ont think twice about whether the opinion they behave hurts someone elses feelings. A Millennial is more likely to say, What a sucky idea, and they dont beggarly it in an insulting way.Everyone must adjust in order to become comfortable with generational differences, she said.You appreciate these kids with their fresh ideas, their youthful thinking, their sort of I can do anything approach to the workplace, she said. Theyre like a breath of fresh air in many ways.