Reclaiming Conversation: The Power of Talk in a Digital Age

I slowly made my way through Reclaiming Conversation by Sherry Turkle the last two weeks and am still digesting the book. While a bit more academic than I usually read in the sociology field, her research and focus group studies made me pause and evaluate our society's relationship with modern technology.

One of the things that has bothered me about my phone/electronics usage in recent years was the feeling that my mind and memory were atrophying. Was outsourcing my memory to devices truly helpful? Is instant access to all information good? What about the connections, deep thought, conversations, creativity, and serendipity that wrestling for answers and concepts can bring? Maybe there is something missing after all. If I can just google a fact on my phone and not spend a few moments pulling up an old memory, I may miss connections to prior experience. Knowledge overload without wisdom development.

Turkle also delves into the ethics and morality of technology in our interactions with other people: "Even as we treat machines as if they were almost human, we develop habits that have us treating human beings as almost-machines...We want more from technology and less from each other." In other words, we'd rather invent new technology or an app than to engage with other people. And when we do engage with people we often treat them as cogs. How has technology changed the way we interact with fellow image bearers? Do we chat with the grocery clerk during check out or do we remain silent staring at our devices? Do we make eye contact as much as we used to? Interesting questions to ponder going about daily life. It has made me pause and listen a bit more frequently.

Another side of the morality issue, the author closed the book with a personal story of when she started deeply questioning what technology can or should not do in our modern world. She was part of a team that was testing robots as companions for the elderly in nursing homes. The whole group was watching while an elderly lady shared her life story with a seal-shaped robot with sympathetic looking eyes when she realized that they had turned into spectators. A whole room of adults who could have provided a listening ear, compassion, and respect for a prior generation's life experience was evaluating if a robot could replace them. In that moment, she saw the demeaning shadow of technology. She began to question how modern technology is being applied. Has it gone too far? Is there a line? Where is it? What are we missing?

As with most philosophical questions, there are no easy answers. I'm still unsure what disciplines, solutions, or practices can create a more balanced relationship with technology within my own life let alone society as a whole. But if we as a society begin discussing the ethical and moral questions surrounding new technology rather than assuming that advancement is always good, maybe we can shape a better future--one with a healthier, more humanizing relationship with technology.