The World and the World Wide Web

After watching the video last class, I was shocked at most of the stories we saw. I was horrified by the website that glorified anorexia and flabbergasted by the girl who created a pornographic alter-ego on MySpace to overcome her poor self-esteem and confidence issues. Although I had been introduced to the idea of identity shaping technology before, I didn’t have a good grasp on this concept until watching the video. It made me think about the ways in which one’s cultural identity shapes the way one uses technology.

In the article about the cultural differences in instant messaging, the authors discuss different ways that people of different cultures communicate online. They described how some cultures will talk to only one person while others may have several windows running concurrently. They compare different cultures’ uses of emoticons. The article discusses which types of cultures are more likely to use audio-video interaction. This reading is more focused on “what” different people do, but I am more interested in the “why” and the “how”.

In my experiences communicating with students from China and Korea, I have found several fundamental differences in the ways Eastern and Western cultures communicate via technology. Of course, my observations are biased since I am using my own personal experiences as well as those of my similarly aged peers, but I will attempt to be as balanced as possible in my analysis.

One recurring theme I have noticed is the differences in why we communicate in the first place. In the U.S., it is very normal to open your chat window when bored, lazy, procrastinating, or when there is nothing better to do. In Asia, this type of behavior is strongly discouraged; instead, they appear to only use online communication when absolutely necessary. How often do we hear American students say something along the lines of, “I got so distracted doing my homework because I kept talking to my friends”? In Asian countries, where academics are a much higher priority than social life, this attitude is unheard of.

American students are much more lighthearted in their online communication and deliberately use their messages to display aspects of their personality. Have you ever seen a Facebook photo with dozens of bickering comments underneath it? Most of the time, there is not an actual conflict going on underneath the photo, but it is a reflection of the goofiness and playfulness our culture loves to use on the Internet. In Asian cultures, there is none of this. You say want you want to say, straight to the point, no dancing around. Asian people definitely have a sense of humor, but they don’t necessarily like to convey that when they speak to each other online.

I’ve noticed lots of Asian students have started using “lol” and similar text-speak phrases. I think that they are trying to emulate the American way of “chatting”, which I don’t think is a good thing. There is no correct way to communicate. It is crucial for a country to maintain its own culture and unique qualities. In some ways, I believe we should all start communicating like Asians. We might actually get some homework done.