Group Behavior

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In an ideal world, social networking would promote knowledge, enhance awareness, strengthen social bonds, and provide us with an opportunity to connect as a human family. Unfortunately, our interactions on the various social platforms do not always feel so humanistic, which leads us to ask: Has social media helped us to become more social? Or has it further isolated us? In this discussion, you are asked to consider whether or not advancements in social networking have contributed to group mentality. Is communication through social media an effective way to engage in productive and meaningful dialogues and debates?

First, title your post, “Group Behavior.”

For your initial post, review the videos The Plague That Made People Dance Themselves to Death, How to Understand Power, and A Black Man Undercover in the Alt-Right. Then answer the following questions:

Have social media platforms helped us become more social? Or have they isolated us more? What does social psychology suggest?
Are echo chambers changing the way we see the world? How can we avoid being a victim of what some refer to as the social media bubble?
How can social media developers encourage users to engage in a constructive, respectful dialogue with others—both within and outside of their communities? Make sure to provide concrete examples.
Should social media users be restricted to people older than 18? At what age might a person become able to begin using social media in healthy, adaptive, and socially responsible ways? Explain your response.
How does the concept of group behavior apply to any of the following programmatic course themes:
Self-care
Social justice
Emotional intelligence
Career connections
Ethics

Sample Solution

Group Behavior

It would appear Americans are more socially connected than ever, yet 1 in 5 report often or always feeling lonely. This paradox has led many to ask, “Does social media cause or influence social isolation?” the answer is not a simple “yes” or ‘no.” Social media usage can help us alleviate social isolation by connecting individuals because of their physical environment with others online. Yet there are some negative social media effects becoming more apparent as its use increases in day to day life. There is a strong linear association between increased social media usage and increase perceived social isolation. A study by the University of Pittsburgh in Pennsylvania found that teens who use social media heavily are 3 times as likely to feel socially isolated. Some hypothesize that this is because they are seeing through a screen everyone partaking in different social activities in the real world – and they are not part of it.

This was the first time that the games were held in a Scandinavian country. The Oslo winter games debuted the Olympic torch. This was post World War II and Germany and Japan were banned from the competition. There was, also, a record number of people who watched the events.

Hjallis Andersen from Norway, won three gold medals in speed skating. He won the 5,000 and 10,000 meter races by the largest margin in the history of the events. Andreas Ostler and Lorenz Nieberl of Germany each won two titles. There was controversy because the total weight of their team was over 1,000 pounds, and people complained that they had more momentum which led them to their gold medals. After the Oslo Games, they enforced a 880 pound weight limit. Then Andrea Mead Lawrence, alpine skier, won two gold medals and had arguably the best performance.

American Dick Button became the first skater to perform a triple loop. Canada won the ice hockey title in the winter games as well. Scandinavian countries dominated skiing events. The top 17 skiers were from either Finland, Norway, or Sweden.

Sochi, Russia 2014

This was the first time that the Winter Games were held in Russia. There was controversy surrounding the location of the event because they didn’t think there would be enough snow to cover the grounds for the event. Also, construction of the buildings were behind schedule, and there were complaints of mismanagement and corruption. Russia spent $51 billion on the games, which was the most for any winter Olympic games. Russia was also having turmoil with Ukraine. There was a mechanical failure during the opening ceremony where one of the lights for the Olympic logo was not lit up.

There was approximately 2,800 athletes from 88 countries. There was a record of 98 events. Dominating speed skating was the Dutch team, they took home 23 of the 36 medals that were awarded for speed skating. Dutch speed skater, Ireen Wust, took home 5 medals (2 gold and 3 silver). Russia finished the games with the most gold medals (13) and the most medals all together (33). American skier, Bode Miller, became the oldest Alpine medalist ever (36). Mikaela Shiffrin’s victory made her the youngest Olympic slalom champion in history, she was just 18 years old. Marit Bjorgen (Norway), won 3 gold medals to bring her total to 6, the most all-time for a female Winter Olympian. Ole Einar Bjorndalen (Norway) won two medals to bring his career total to 13, the most by Winter Olympian. To conclude, Canadian men’s and women’s ice hockey took home the gold medal. Canada, also, swept the curling events.

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