Question

Nowadays the way many people interact with each other has changed because of technology. In what ways has technology affected the types of relationships people make? Has this become a positive or negative development?

Model Answer

The way we make friends has changed radically in the past 40 years. Nowadays you can be friends with anyone, anywhere in the world; you just need to have an Internet connection. There is some debate about whether this is a change for the better. Some people argue that online relationships are not as fulfilling as those in the real world.

One recent change is that it is now possible to have a good friend whom you have never met in real life. A recent survey in the UK found that 73 per cent of people in the UK had at least one such friend. Previously, long distance relationships were conducted by mail so it was difficult to become close to someone in a short period of time. Today, we can easily share voice recordings, video clips and text messages, making it possible to have a close relationship with someone thousands of miles away.

There are both pros and cons to making friends online. One advantage is that you can more easily make connections with people who have the same problems as you. Online support groups are a good example of this. On the other hand, chatting online is not the same as meeting someone in person. Without physical cues we may not fully understand the person we are communicating with. As a result, people might not be as close to their friends as they were in the past.

In conclusion, although social networks make it easier to make friends in other countries, I think it would be a shame if we stopped meeting friends in real life.

(268 words)