Electronics: Help or Hinder?

How long do you think you could last without using electronics? A week? A day? Even just a few hours? While things like TVs, cell phones and computers can be helpful and convenient in so many ways, could it be true that they act as a barrier in other ways?

Star Tribune blogger Jeremy Olson discussed this very topic on his page today in a post titled “Could your family live without electronics.”

“No surprise that 86 percent of families listed watching movies or TV shows together as their most common form of ‘WeTime,’ reported Olson. “It is interesting, though, that 42 percent of families now play video games as a togetherness activity (with Wii Sports being the most popular family game).”

Olson poses a very polarized argument for both the positives and negatives of electronics for families. Video game consoles can bring families together for a family game night, but they can also be distractions that isolate people. While some people use web cameras to connect and talk to family members all over the world, there are those whose time spent online detracts from valuable time spent with family.

Electronics are a valuable vehicle for communication, but do they create more problems or distractions than benefits? What do you think?

Published on: April 21, 2011