Jay’Mi Vazquez – News Editor
With the rise of technology in society and the impact COVID-19 has had on relationships, students expressed their thoughts on how impactful technology can be on relationships.
Elementary education major Stanislav Rakov, a junior, said he feels that social media has made relationships worse.
“For friends, it made it better to easily connect with them, but for romantic relationships, there is a lot of mistrust attached to it,” Rakov said.
Rakov said that social media’s impact on society as a whole is not good. He said that there are a lot of misconceptions about the way relationships should be handled online.
People tend to make their relationship seem better than what it really is online, which ultimately leads to the disconnect from reality and virtuality, Rakov said.
Psychology major Bella Lage, a freshman, said that social media has not improved relationships due to the fact that comparisons are widely made.
Lage said that the comparisons that could be made to other people’s relationships could have a negative impact on their own.
Special education major Taylor Wasilewski, a junior, said that social media in general is not good for people, especially in relationships.
“I feel like relationships obviously need communication, and social media provides that, but there are other factors that go along with having social media,” Wasilewski said.
Wasilewski is a student worker at the Violence Prevention Advocacy Support program at the university, which often deals with people dealing with negative impacts social media has on relationships.
“Relationship violence is commonly advanced because of social media. If someone were to post something that their partner didn’t like, that could lead to violence,” Wasilewski said.
Health science major Joné Mwape, a junior, said that social media has its positive and negative impacts on relationships.
“It has helped connect people. But at the same time, it also puts this image for relationships, which is the negative part,” Mwape said.
Mwape feels people tend to feel pressured to live up to the relationship standards showcased online. He said this should not be the case; however, with the way social media influences others and puts pressure on people, it has.
In a Pew Research Center study, 34% of people between the ages of 18 and 29 have felt jealous or unsure about their relationship status due to how engaged their partner may be on social media.
It also showed that social media has impacted face-to-face interactions and promoted unrealistic expectations which negatively affect relationships.
Sociology major Gianna Rubino, a junior, said that social media has improved some aspects of relationships.
“In a sense, it has helped improve communication. However, I think it could destroy relationships as well,” Rubino said.
Rubino said that people often compare themselves to other people on social media.
The imposter syndrome associated with social media could have negative effects on how someone may perceive themselves or someone else’s relationship, Rubino said. She worries that relationships would be immensely impacted because of this comparison.
Social work major Mikayla Lumfuakiadi, a sophomore, said social media hurts and improves any type of relationships
“Anyone online could affect your relationship like outside influences,” Lumfuakiadi said.
Lumfuakiadi said people are just so hurtful nowadays online that it makes it hard to know when someone is being genuine.
“The impact celebrities and others have on people and the way society has framed ‘good relationships’ to be is what ruins relationships entirely. I’d rather social media not play a role in relationships, but unfortunately, that is what society has made normal,” Lumfuakiadi said.
