If people start to buy the idea that machines are great companions for the elderly or for children, as they increasingly seem to do, we are really playing with fire.
Sherry TurkleRead
Networked, we are together, but so lessened are our expectations of each other that we can feel utterly alone. And there is the risk that we come to see others as objects to be accessed—and only for the parts we find useful, comforting, or amusing.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Despite being connected through technology, our expectations of interpersonal relationships have diminished, leading to feelings of loneliness.
In a world where technology allows us to connect with countless others effortlessly, we often find ourselves feeling isolated. Sherry Turkle's quote highlights the paradox of modern connectivity: while we are digitally networked, our expectations of true companionship and understanding have declined. This can result in our tendency to view others merely as sources of convenience or entertainment, which undermines the depth of genuine human relationships and can ultimately leave us feeling alone.
Themes
LonelinessConnectionExpectationsRelationshipsTechnology
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about the impact of social media on mental health.
More from Sherry Turkle
All quotes →We live in a technological universe in which we are always communicating. And yet we have sacrificed conversation for mere connection.
Sherry TurkleRead
The most used program in computers and education is PowerPoint. What are you learning about the nature of the medium by knowing how do to a great PowerPoint presentation? Nothing. It certainly doesn't teach you how to think critically about living in a culture of simulation.
Sherry TurkleRead
Technology is seductive when what it offers meets our human vulnerabilities. And as it turns out, we are very vulnerable indeed. We are lonely but fearful of intimacy. Digital connections and the sociable robot may offer the illusion of companionship without the demands of friendship. Our networked life allows us to hide from each other, even as we are tethered to each other. We’d rather text than talk.
Sherry TurkleRead
Human relationships are rich and they're messy and they're demanding. And we clean them up with technology. Texting, email, posting, all of these things let us present the self as we want to be. We get to edit, and that means we get to delete, and that means we get to retouch, the face, the voice, the flesh, the body -- not too little, not too much, just right.
Sherry TurkleRead
The feeling that 'no one is listening to me' make us want to spend time with machines that seem to care about us.
Sherry TurkleRead
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