A world where people had conversations face-to-face is now turning into a place where getting the most followers and posting selfies are more important. With social media websites such as Facebook and Twitter, people are able to connect with anyone at a much faster rate.

It is now much easier to locate and keep in touch with people across greater distances. You can contact people from different countries and continents all around the world, but social media doesn’t allow the same emotional connection as real-life interactions.

Social media can make it harder for us to form real relationships. According to Cornwell University’s Steven Strogatz, he worries that “by focusing so much of our time and psychic energy on these less meaningful relationships, our most important connection, he fears, will weaken.”

One negative effect social media creates with communication is a lack of privacy. According to Booth, “Because interpersonal communication is changing, we’re finding ourselves more apt to share on social media the sort of information we might have previously shared privately face-to-face. We always have to keep in mind that our social networks are searchable-even when privacy settings are set extremely high, it’s always possible to find out personal information.”

When asking a group of high school students their opinion on social media, freshman Savannah Plume said, “A lot of people abuse it.” She added, “They aren’t as connected with each other.” She, Casey Kula, and Jessie Sloan all agreed, “I feel like time goes by faster when I’m not online and actually hanging out with my friends.”

One day at school I saw a group of girls walking around together, messaging on their phones instead of talking to each other. I think it’s sad how some people don’t know how to communicate the way we used to.

“It connects so many people with each other, but it also disconnects them at the same time,” explained Bob Jones student Michelle Le Roy.

Sure, it’s fun to see what other people are doing, but it’s also good to communicate face-to-face.