Comm 490 Blog

We’ve discussed so many things in this short 5-week course it is difficult to narrow it down to just one because things were so fast paced it was difficult to spend much time focusing on something specific beyond the research project.  However, I did find many things interesting and learned a lot more than I thought.

I wasn’t expecting to go as in depth or enjoy how in depth we went as a group into virtual communities.  Before beginning this my only experience with a virtual world was the Sims.  I can honestly see the usefulness of continuing to utilize those tools in the future, if only for fun.  Getting others to grasp and embrace the idea of meeting in a virtual world professionally wouldn’t be impossible, but not everyone (including me prior to this seminar) is as open to the idea.

In any class there are plenty of technical terms and concepts to learn but the real-world applications are where it continues to exist in my mind beyond the final class.  I learned much more beyond the idea that computer mediated communication is constrained by the lack of nonverbal communication.  I learned a lot about the dynamics of online communication and the advantages and difficulties behind it.  What hurdles beyond not being to communicate in person we face when digitally interacting.  I never considered how many relationships I have begun, maintained and even ended online, or if I did, I didn’t put any thought into it, how and why I chose to use that form of communication.

When reading the overview of the class a lot of the material seemed obvious, but I learned that there is a lot more depth to the topic than what I realized and that understanding of computer mediated communication has a great deal of application in my everyday life, online and in person.  I want to thank everyone for being a part of my last class of my undergraduate career, I really did enjoy and appreciate it more than I thought I would.  Good Luck and Best Wishes!

I learned several new things when using Second Life for the first few times.  One being I am not as technologically savvy as I thought I was.  Not that I cannot understand and figure things out in a new technological experience, or that I don’t have the motivation to do so, but it takes more time than I anticipated just to acclimate to the new place.  Especially one as dense and limitless as Second Life.

I was surprised (even though I had been warned beforehand) at the number of ways it could be utilized beyond just entertainment purposes.  Education, Business, Research and other professionals have a place there, and not just one person trying it out.  As we saw in class there are whole islands or specific areas to explore that are hyper focused to one concentration. 

I also found that I enjoyed the opportunity to explore something different, new, and totally out of my comfort zone like we were asked to do in the assignment.  I can say had it never been assigned I most likely would have never attempted to explore that virtual community and I am glad I did so. 

As most of the class has noted, we as a society have all different kinds of networks, all with different strengths of bonds. The closest strong-tie bond that initially comes to mind is familial bonds. Those who have known you throughout your entire life and been there to witness the good the bad and the ugly, establishes a connection that is difficult to reciprocate in other forms of networks.

The only thing similar to that for me is my recovery network and that ranks a little higher in strong-tie connections than my friend network. The reason is because the people in my recovery network have the shared experience of going to the precipice of jails institutions and death and coming back (hopefully permanently, but not always) and that experience of shared trauma bonds us closer than almost all of my closest friends--including one I've had since the third grade.

Moving outward toward weak-tie bonds are my work network, which has changed rather recently which rates it a little lower on the scale than maybe most people. Depending on the time spent and achievements accomplished with co-workers determines how strong the connection is.

Lastly some of my weakest-tie bonds are professional acquaintances and local community members. People I've met possibly on more than one occasion and would say hi to and maybe chitchat if the opportunity presented itself, but I wouldn't delve beyond surface level communication with them.

These all can be on a sliding scale almost, with life events (tragedies and celebrations) bringing them closer to us or pushing us farther apart, and sometimes in these unexpected changes surprising bonds form.

"As long as the ties that bind us together are stronger than those that would tear us apart, all will be well."

-Narcotics Anonymous Basic Text

The difference between my real and virtual identities is my online persona is a very small, filtered, curated glimpse of my life.  I choose what I want to share, what photos, memories and statuses and they are highly edited, and I know I am far from alone in that aspect.  In a world where the “dream” woman is so photoshopped they are considering putting labels that warn of filtered images because young woman develops unrealistic ideas of what they should look like, almost nothing is what it seems.  To the point where even real media is questioned.  The post of my family on Father’s Day is one specifically orchestrated moment in which we were all asked to gather and smile and look happy.  What can’t be seen is my sister and I bickering and mom getting frustrated and my daughter trying to pull the cats tail, it is only a sliver of the whole picture.  While its all fine and good to say you want to be as transparent as possible online, you look at others with their “perfect” lives and its hard not to feel the pressure to measure up to their highlight reels.  If we saw the everyday ugliness on the other side then maybe the grass wouldn’t look nearly as green.

I have always perceived a great deal of difference between online and in-person education. I took one semester at an online college before transferring to Salisbury and absolutely detested it. We did not have any online "classes" with all of us meeting simultaneously, and it was completely virtual. Read the chapters, post based on the prompts, comment on other classmate's answers. Sound familiar? Not that there is anything wrong with this method, it is just vastly different from my past education, and everyone learns differently. Some better than others at different formats of the classroom experience.

I also have found a big difference between that semester and this class because this class focuses on a topic that interests me instead of something I do not grasp as quickly or easily like Biology (something that requires a lot of one-on-one time for me to excel at.) Lastly, as I mentioned on some of my comments on other posts, I find that communication in an in-person class setting similar sets up a better foundation to meet others, facilitate relationship building between classmates and more opportunities to learn more about each other.

There are obvious advantages to distance learning--the ability to connect virtually anywhere, at any time, and is the only reason I will hopefully be graduating with my degree after this class because I live 3 hours away from Salisbury now and commuting is not an option.

I am happy I had this hybrid class experience before graduating to help me get rid of some biases against online learning.

After nearly three weeks of interactions with a group of students I have never met in person or in any other virtual classroom setting I am pleased with the random chance that brought this group together. Not that there is as much chance of drama in a virtual classroom setting as there would be in more commercial social media platforms in a non-educational setting but everyone seems to support each other here. From what I have seen not much contradiction or disagreement in discussions (which can sometimes be a good thing and allows for a more rounded conversation) and everyone I have reached out to individually has been very supportive and helpful. Specifically when posting our research project ideas I found the constructive feedback very well thought out and objective. Even though I didn't decide on either of my proposed ideas to research for my final paper, several responses helped me determine the direction I wanted to go and additional research led me to my current path for my final research paper and presentation. Good luck everyone in the last two weeks and lets finish strong!

I met, got to know, and continued to support my current sponsee through social networks.  She was living in in-patient treatment when we were introduced to each other and she reached out to me to ask me to sponsor her.  I remembered her from our mothers and women’s meeting being very attentive and contributing to the discussion, sharing, and trying to listen even when the other women weren’t.  So, I accepted and though I had never met this woman I got to know her through the few phone calls she was permitted to make once or twice a week.  We met weekly on zoom meetings to discuss step work, and through that time I got to understand what led her to where she was now.  Step work makes you admit things to your sponsor that you would never even admit to yourself.  It forms a bond that is very deep very quickly, and all through technology. I began to send things for her and her children that they needed and when she completed treatment, we began to talk every day through video.  Being able to see each other on video is the closest to seeing each other face to face and that has helped our connection stay strong and honest.  I don’t know when I’m going to be able to meet her in person, but she is one of the few people speak to every single day and have that close of a bond with.

One of the topics that interests me was one that was suggested already, what role does anonymity play, specifically in the scope of social media? What are the pros and cons of having the ability to interact anonymously? How has it been used for harm and for good in the development of social media throughout its history? Possibly exploring beyond social media to virtual reality and the impact of being virtually nameless.

One example of starting an interpersonal relationship that has had the most impact on me personally was the founding of a Mothers and Women in Recovery zoom meeting that I created over a year and a half ago. While zoom isn't technically a social media platform, it was a facilitator for many social media interactions and relationships to come afterward. After coming to live in the Frederick area I found that taking a two year old to a meeting proved very difficult and I really longed for the companionship of mothers in the area. I had belonged to a Mom group in Gaithersburg where I had previously lived and found this resource invaluable to my life as a new mom. So it was suggested to me to start a meeting of my own. With COVID and little experience a in person meeting so quickly was going to be a great deal harder than if I were to use the newest technological innovation to hit the recovery community in quite some time--virtual meetings. So with some help I started a meeting solely for women and mothers in recovery. The goal was to be a place where women felt comfortable sharing about some of the things that they might hold back in a regular meeting setting, out of the comfortability of their own home, while making dinner, changing diapers or trying to calm down a screaming toddler. What I didn't realize was the same thing that I was craving was a much desired niche group for women in search of meetings. So many women come and are supportive of not only such a great group of ladies but also a safe place for them to share and recover together.

While an example to demonstrate maintaining relationships is much more common in my day-to-day social media actions, it is just as important in my life. Throughout the years, and the schools, and the moves, and the jobs I have met and befriended many different types of people. Social media has become one of the most useful tools to keep up with those people and keep them up to date on my life as well. Most people have never met my daughter in person, but they comment/like/message as she grows up about how big she is getting and how beautiful she is. Former co-workers have had input on my latest job search and have been able to help through sending LinkedIn messages back and forth. And while I still receive baby and wedding announcements in the mail, I find out about them first on social media and am able to offer congratulations or place a call to catch up from there.

Lastly, I think an example of ending a relationship on social media was one of the most difficult things for me to determine, but when I did, I had endless material to support it with. While I can say I have ended romantic relationships through phone, and had people break up with me similarly, the real end of the relationship nowadays is through social media. The unfriending of his/her friends, the dreaded relationship status change from "in a relationship" to "it's complicated" to "single." And it used to be a post on Facebook so EVERYONE could have something to say about it and comment, making things hurt so much worse. As time goes on, the untagging of photos or flashbacks of moments when you were still together is difficult. And most recently for me, the repugnant (or maybe for some not so unwelcome) ex direct message wanting to talk about things or even get back together. All can be so uncomfortable and draw out the end of a most likely not so ground shattering relationship in the first place.

Social media can influence and either foster or aide in the destruction of desires, feelings and relationships themselves.

Two years ago, I had just I had just started working for county workforce services in an administrative support capacity.  When beginning training, the cognitive effort it took to complete the job duties was much more than it is now.  Throughout the training experience I gained confidence in my ability to handle any situation.  I adapted my level of skill in communicating and now at my new position I have some of the same insecurities as before, but I am still working with most of the same people. Because I already have shared memories and experiences with them, I feel more comfortable not only in my ability to communicate my needs, concerns, thoughts and opinions but also to be on the receiving end of theirs. 

Throughout the last two years I have also become more proficient in my ability to navigate the different programs we use on a regular basis in my office--zoom, teams, office 365, SharePoint, OneNote and some marketing material creation sites such as Canva.  When I was first hired for the position, I only had beginner knowledge of MS Office Suite and the others but with assignments using each of the platforms including some marketing experience opportunities and the support of my superior I feel comfortable operating in all of them without too much difficulty.  There is always more that I can learn, and I am looking forward to doing so as I pursue my professional career path.  

Digital media has changed the world of mass communication in ways unthought of before.  Users can now have immediate access to people all around the world but at the same time it can feel superficial at best.  As you move further away from face-to-face communication it is easier for videos images and text to be manipulated into a less genuine more image or commercially motivated interaction. 

When wishing someone Happy Birthday for example instead of a handwritten card or a visit in person people now send a quick message that can even be automatically generated.  The thought and the care are seemingly gone.  I try to take the extra step to personalize a social media Birthday message if I must take that route (usually because of the convenience) and do a deep dive for old photos together to make a collage or spend some extra time to write a well thought and genuine message.

When living away from home forces me to communicate primarily through social media I’ve been able to stay in touch with my youngest family members growth milestones through photos posted and use video messaging to send thoughts and jokes throughout the day that I would normally be able to tell in person.  My family had everyone get together and hold up letters that spelled out “We Miss You Shelby” and tagged everyone to create a long thread that everyone could comment on.  That wouldn’t have been possible to instantly receive and help with homesickness without social media.  While technology does indeed sometimes create a distance between people and interpersonal communication it can also bridge the gap that physical distance creates. 

Every person lands somewhere on the scale between introverted and extroverted and depending on that position they have more of a tendency to feel comfortable in their own company or the company of others on a larger scale.  But unless they are a hermit everyone needs some type of human connection even if they have to use technology to achieve it.  

There are pros and cons when considering a life of isolation as well as being a part of a community.  Being isolated can allow a sense of independence and allow you to be not reliant on others.  I have experience with isolation, as people all over the world did when the COVID pandemic hit but before that I have always leaned more towards the introvert end of the spectrum.  I enjoy solitary activities like reading and drawing and find peace and solace in my own company.  

My generation has grown up alongside the innovation of technology and have developed the virtual communication skills to go along with it.  As opposed to other generations--either who were introduced to technology later in life or were exposed to it from the day they were born--we have been able to develop our social skills as new technologies developed.  I was the last generation that can remember what life was like before the internet and cell phones and there are both pros and cons to this situation. 

As most people know 93% of all communication is non-verbal, which allows A LOT of room for mistakes in a virtual setting.  While I know the value of disconnecting from the constant barrage of technology, I also can see the value in the efficiency, ease, and essentially instant communication we receive virtually.  Unlike in person communication there are a lack of verbal and visual cues when communicating online.  I have learned to adjust by focusing on being clear and concise in my thoughts, being honest when I have questions and by generally overcompensating for the lack of the in-person experience.

While I have always thrived in isolation, I also enjoy working in a group setting which is more difficult when working remotely.  I have found it important to be considerate of other people’s time and to be clear about the status of objectives and goals.  I especially need to spend a lot more of my time developing relationships with my colleagues because not only does it encourage a sense of comradery but coworkers who are closer seem to have more invested in seeing each other succeed. 

Hi guys! My name is Shelby and this is my Comm 490 Tumblr and my first class in quite some time. I'm living in Northwestern Maryland in Frederick and raising my two year old daughter, Rielle on my own. I am working for the State of Maryland as a Job Service Specialist, helping people find jobs in my area. I also sponsor young women with alcohol and addiction problems which is very important to after losing my father to the disease five years ago.