CMC

CMC has become a very integral part of our society as is even demonstrated through our course that is via the internet. Though I wouldn’t want all of my courses to be online, I would definitely have to say that I have learned more through my online courses. Courses in class tend to have interaction through group work, but it is not the same benefit that I have found from being able to view my classmates’ comments through forums. For me, group work is more important for learning the skill of working as a team, whereas forums are a different means of communicating with peers that allow a person to learn more from the peers’ thoughts than what would be exposed through group work in class. Aside from online classes though, CMC is not really as evident in my life now as it was back in middle school and high school. I hardly get on instant messenger anymore because I’m usually spending time with my friends in person. If I am on my computer due to homework, I usually don’t get online because I don’t want to be too distracted. I do utilize texting but not usually to carry on conversations. It’s usually more of a means of accomplishing a goal such as confirming a time of when a friend and I are going to meet up. In high school I use to talk almost every night on instant messenger to my friends and especially my boyfriend. I think part of the reason why I used IM so much more during that time period was partly because I wasn’t able to see my friends as much as I do now. Though I saw them at school every day, we really didn’t get to hang out like I get to hang out with my friends now.

What I find interesting is how different CMC has played a part in some of my friends’ lives. I’m definitely not against CMC, even though I don’t use it as often anymore. Though I think CMC has its downsides, in general I think that CMC has been more important in aiding our communication rather than degrading it. For instance, as in the case with both my sister and one of my roommates, they have made several friends online due to CMC. It has given them the opportunity to be friends with people in other states and other locations that they otherwise would not have met had it not been for communication through the internet. For my sister, it has led to her developing several close friendships where she has begun talking to these people on the phone, texting, and even meeting them in person occasionally. For my roommate it has led to her developing several friendships, including her boyfriend. What I have noticed about their relationships that have developed into close ones, is that their communication does not remain as only CMC. I think this is because CMC is less personal and as two people deepen their relationship or friendship, they will want to fulfill other relational needs such as hearing a person’s voice or physically being able to see the person. However, since these friendships are long distance, their main communications remains as CMC. As CMC initiated the friendships it has remained as a way of maintaining the friendships, though it may not be the sole means or best means of communication. I also think that some people may benefit more from CMC than others. Just as we develop our FTF communication skills that we see emphasized at the end of each chapter, I think that we also develop our CMC skills and that many of the suggestions in the book can be applied to CMC.

There are of course some concerns about developing friendships online since people are more inclined deviate from the truth. We’ve all heard the stories about people pretending to be someone who they are not and then convincing the other person to meet up with them, leading to a bad outcome. CMC definitely has it’s downsides because people take advantage of the ease of hiding the truth or trying to be someone that they are not because the other person may never know. On the other hand, if used appropriately from both people, there can be benefits of new friendships that may have never been possible without computers. It’s important to be cautious in these circumstances as I know both my sister and roommate are. However, its also important to remember that deceit can also be a problem in FTF and we also have to be cautious and build trust with people we see.