The millennial generation or “the millennials” are the generation that brings together young people born between 1981 and 1995 who became adults at the turn of the millennium, those of us who today are young adults very different from the young people of the generations that preceded us. .
According to information from INEGI (National Institute of Statistic and Geography) in 1990, a total of 19 million Mexicans were between 20 and 34 years old, while in the last census, in 2010, the population between 20 and 34 years old reached a total of 27 million people. With these figures, there is no doubt that today, in Mexico, it is young people who have the greatest participation, politically, culturally and socially.
Millennials: a generation with its lights and shadows
And no, it’s not that we are more rebellious than the young people of the 80’s or that we have more ideals than the generation of the 60’s had in their time; it is simply that We were born in a time with different characteristics, especially with regard to the technological and media environment We were baptized by the internet and everything that surrounds it. Today we are just one click away (and a good internet connection) from getting to know the whole world.
Internet and social networks and changes in communication
The emergence and rise of the internet. as well as the different related technological advances, make talking about social networks, search engines, applications and “the cloud” everyday terms for today’s young people, who undoubtedly use expressions daily such as “you google it”, “we whatsapp” or “you left me unnoticed.”
The Internet has permeated our daily lives, from the way we get a job (it is common to hear of online job offers where the only contact is made through email exchanges), to how we stay in touch with our friends ( Well, we no longer spend hours glued to the landline since it is easier to send an instant message with a photo and video).
The Internet has also changed the way we consume. Activities as basic as going to the supermarket have begun to become outdated, since it is no longer necessary to wait in lines or go through the hustle and bustle of the crowd because we can make purchases from our computer or tablet. Talking about the impact that the Internet has generated in our lives would take us more than one article; However, we can highlight an aspect that has been transformed thanks to the Internet: the way in which “millennials” establish social relationships.
Before addressing this controversial topic, I have to clarify that the feeling does not change, that is, love is love, friendship is friendship and even the feeling of rejection towards a person remains despite technological advances. However, what does change are the places, the processes through which we establish personal relationships and even the temporality with which these are established and the new dimension that is born from this new technological and cultural paradigm.
Social networks as scenarios
Today we establish links on social networks, applications and through video conferencing, since it is easier to discuss a topic of interest in a WhatsApp group than to gather the 25 contacts to whom you are sending the message; You can also stay up to date, whether you like it or not, with what your contacts are doing without having to talk to them. If you really need to talk to your friend who lives several kilometers from your city, it can be solved with a coffee via video conference, it is no longer necessary to imagine moments, a photo on your wall can bring you closer to the experience; and if that is the intention of social networks, to keep us in touch.
This means that social networks as a scenario only They motivate us to take our personal relationships to another level, just to make them simpler, although along the way we lose certain levels of privacy and intimacy. Through the exchange of “inbox” or thanks to video calls on “Skype” we enjoy the possibility of immediately connecting with friends who live far away. The previous situation is explained by answering a simple question: are most of our contacts, for example on Facebook, people we know outside of the virtual world? our best friend, family even our partner.
At this point, social networks fulfill their function, they make it easier for us to stay in touch, the essence of relationships is the same, I am friends with someone, I have a relationship with someone, I dislike someone, etc. What changes is that now we take it to the virtual plane to stay closer.
The scope of social networks
Social networks (whether Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Skype, WhatsApp or any other) like the hypothesis of “the 6 degrees of separation” (taken up by Milgram in 1967) arise with the idea that we are just a few people away from knowing to all the world. This could be exemplified by the idea that each person has an acquaintance, and this acquaintance, in turn, knows someone who knows someone who knows someone who knows us. A very real idea that leads us to become aware that the world is a handkerchief.
Although we are not six people away from knowing everyone, thanks to social networks we are a little closer, since we can be in contact with acquaintances of our acquaintances, but we can also meet people with our same interests even without knowing what they are like, If we “like” the same pages we are already connected. It is also notable how easily we can establish contact with people that perhaps we thought was impossible, we are only one “follow” away from our writer, singer, commentator, artist or favorite person.
Social networks catapult us into the world, to the extent that we can publish a photo and in less than two seconds someone on the other side of the planet can be “liking” it. This makes it common to learn about cultural customs from other countries thanks to a video that someone shared, or it is increasingly common for young people to have long-distance love relationships.
This way of establishing virtual relationships thanks to the reach of social networks leads us to learn about the new processes through which a link is developed, even if it is through a smartphone or a computer, and with the limitations that this support entails.
Social networks and new interaction processes
Now it’s time to move on to the most interesting part of the article, analyzing the impact that virtual life has had on our lives. This influence is not only reflected in the way we speak or write; It has undoubtedly disrupted the way we relate; Well, we can be part of different groups without even knowing their members. If we have a common taste we are already connected, even if we don’t like the idea very much, and I mean the typical: “You don’t know me but I added you because I liked your profile photo.”
A tool to lose the shame of meeting other people?
The whole ritual of seeing each other, chatting once, going out again, and realizing the things in common is no longer necessary, because With this contact’s profile you already have knowledge of many relevant aspects of their life This makes it easier to know whether you like the person or not before meeting them in person, or at least you can better assess whether it is worth trying to get to know them more.
What’s more: it is no longer necessary to think “Am he interested in me as a friend or something else?”, you are one match away from meeting your ideal partner, and although it may sound like a joke, this is due to the appearance of dating applications. This type, that in seconds they match you with a person, either because they like the same things as you, because you live nearby, or because you are both looking for a partner. Apps have even appeared that put you in contact with people who are physically close… who said fear?
Don’t get me wrong: social media is neither good nor bad in and of itself We usually enjoy talking about their defects, but they also have their positive side. For example, they save you many horrible dates, because before going out with a person you review their profile and get an idea of who they are; It also offers you the possibility of meeting many people from different places, or so close to you that you didn’t even know they existed.
But it is also worth reflecting on the problems that social networks cause. We have all noticed how the profile photos of some contacts do not correspond much to their attractiveness in real life. Another small problem is that we tend to delegate some positive communicative intentions, such as praise, to a simple like on a profile photo: it is more comfortable. Now we know that someone is interested in you if they don’t leave you “seen” in the WhatsApp conversation, and that it is more important for your partner to change their relationship status on Facebook from “single” to “in a relationship” than to receive a bouquet of roses with dedication.
Tinder: the definitive dating app?
Tindermy favorite app, and no, not because I use it, but because it is the reflection of the impact of social networks on our relationships.
We log in with a profile that we build based on our tastes, indicating the place where we live and adding a description of ourselves, taking into account that we cannot have a single photo since this application links us to Facebook photos, all of them. photos, the ones we uploaded and the ones we were tagged in; (be careful, be careful).
After, The application, thanks to a “magical” process, puts us in contact with the people who are close to us, in the same country and region, so you can “hook up” anywhere. This app It allows you to discard or “like” any profile that appears. If you are demanding when it comes to finding a partner, you don’t have to worry because there are hundreds of thousands of profiles, you may like some of them. We come to the strong part of the process, the “match”, which means that a profile that you also liked liked you. If you get a “match” you can start a conversation with the profile and after this point everything depends on you, and that person you talk to.
Tinder would be the friend who introduces you to those you like at the party, but without having to get the invitation to the party. It has another advantage: you don’t have to choose what clothes to wear and, more importantly, you can discover hundreds of people without leaving the place where you are and quickly.
