Digital media might be a boon for communicating real-time information, but ah, therein lies the rub. It’s that instantaneous nature that researchers think might be the cause of a correlation between using Facebook and low grades, and what some believe could lead Twitter users to be morally lacking.
The use of Facebook has been linked to lower grades, according to a study by the education department at Ohio State University. After polling some 200 students, the study found that Facebook users have average GPAs in the 3.0 to 3.5 range, while non-users average 3.5 to 4.0. More tellingly: Facebook users study one to five hours per week, while non-users studied 11 to 15 hours per week.
The takeaway might be that Facebook with its real-time updates is a procrastination tool (gasp) and a time-eater, but the report’s author shied away from announcing a causal relationship. "I'm just saying that there's some kind of relationship there, and there's many third variables that need to be studied," Aryn Karpinski, an education researcher at OSU, told livescience.com.
Meanwhile Twitter users might be in for far worse if a new study from a neuroscience group is to be believed. The research uncovered the fact that fully rounded emotional judgments related to morals and the choices/behaviors of others are awakened only slowly in the synapses, a product of thought and reflection. Humans can respond instantaneously to help those in physical pain, the study found, but social emotions like compassion are slow to take root. Result? Users of instantaneous digital media like Twitter could likely show symptoms of callousness or moral confusion when responding or reacting to the posts of others.
There’s always a down side.