The main task of media is to give people the opportunity to interact and communicate with people from different countries. Social media is the platform where we can send and receive different kind of information. Social media includes television, Internet, smartphone, etc. Nowadays these media tools are available to everyone from adults to adolescents and even children. So, modern families have problems because of the effect of social media. There are three sociological perspectives from which family relations can be analyzed: conflict perspective, structural functionalism perspective and symbolic interactionism perspective. All perspectives give explanations about the social behavior of human beings (AuthorStream, 2014).
Conflict perspective is the theory which examines the society as composed of different groups and interests competing for benefit and resources. The conflict theory points to disparities and hunger as core reasons families are not eating meals together. The family contributes to social inequality by reinforcing economic inequality and by reinforcing patriarchy. Family problems are happened because of financial and, so, social inequality and from hierarchical ideology. Due to the fact that parents give and inherit their wealth to their children, and that each family differs from other in the amount of wealth it has, the family helps reinforce existing inequality. Since the social media has been developed people, especially young generation, can see the social differences not only in particular places but also in television shows, movies, news, social networking sites, etc. So, social media enhances the inequality between families and has a great impact on relationship between parents and children especially if children live in poverty. (Kalinowski)
The second theory is functionalism which states that society is a system of interconnected parts that work together in harmony to keep balance and social equality in the society. Family provides a context for reproducing, feeding, educating and socializing children. The functionalist theory focuses on how every part of society affects and is affected by other parts. For instance, raising number of single-parent and dual-earner families has sacrificed to the number of children who have bad marks in their studies due to the fact that their parents do not have time to control the children’s home activities. But this fact developed the idea of conducting new programs for this kind of families. To explain the effects of social elements there are two definitions which can be used in studying functionalism: functional and dysfunctional. Functional elements mean that society supports the social balance and equality, and dysfunctional means, vice versa, the disruption of social balance and equality. Social media helps to socialize children. For reaching developed society it is necessary to socialize the young generation. Children often take the example of not only their parents and other family members but also of characters from movies, famous and other people whom they see in social media. Sometimes they can get good or bad experience on how to interact with other people and other important issues. Also it may show children their social identity, race, religion, nationality, culture, class, etc. and even the social identities of other people. Thus, mass media has a great influence on society, relationship between families and among family members, especially between parents and children from functional perspective. (Mooney, Knox, and Schacht, 2007).
The symbolic interactionism perspective focuses on changing family dynamic by studying how families define interaction and communication. The communication in family is set by understanding of their roles and situations happening between members. It involves different styles of communication between parents and their children, spouses, siblings and so on. It means that a person interact differently with different members of his/her family. Mostly parents shapes and directs the way how their children should behave and interact with them and other people. From this point social media helps children and people to interact by showing the communication and behaviors between different people and between family members as well. (Kalinowski)
In conclusion, social media can greatly help the youth, children and even adults in their daily life or even in particular cases which may happen in their life. Although, social media has both advantages and disadvantages, it depends on how a child, adolescent or adult use and utilize the information from media. And people should keep in mind that media can’t control or rule our lives. People can use media for getting some new knowledge or for taking some ‘advices’ or directions to behave in particular situation. Social media teaches us how to compare and contrast different aspects of our lives, how to analyze and how to be critical because not all information from these sources is truth. Parents-children relationships and interactions play significant role in the society, and it is important for parents to explain the impact of media for their children, to talk and discuss about realty and truth, and how much time they should spend using it (2012 books, 2012).
References
AuthorStream. (2014). Effects of Social media on Youth. Retrieved from
http://www.authorstream.com/Presentation/manishdv8-2250356-effects-social-media- youth/
Kalinowski, L. Ten Social Pressures That Affect the Family. Ehow. Retrieved from
http://www.ehow.com/info_8775365_ten-social-pressures-affect-family.html
Mooney, Knox, and Schacht. (2007). Understanding Social Problems, 5th edition. Retrieved
2012 books. (2012).Sociological Perspectives on the Family. Retrieved from
http://2012books.lardbucket.org/books/a-primer-on-social-problems/s13-02- sociological-perspectives-on-t.html
