Technological Advancements Have Altered Society's Expectations

Figure 1. Instant Gratification

There is no denying that advancements in technology have had a profound effect on society's expectation of mass media.  We live in a digital world.  "Nearly two-thirds of American adults (65%) use social networking sites, up from 7% when Pew Research Center began systematically tracking social media usage in 2005." (Perrin, 2015)We now have the ability to have online classes, use certain technology such as computers or tablets to take notes, or integrate social media sites like Twitter in our presentations to prove our thesis.  Being constantly connected in all aspects of the classroom, work, and personal environments has left people with this need to be instantly gratified.  We no long wish to wait for information to be released in the newspapers or wait for it on broadcast.  Consumers what information as it is happening, where it is happening, immediately.  "The demand for instant results is seeping into every corner of our lives, and not just virtually.  Smartphone apps eliminate the wait for a cab, a date, or a table at a hot restaurant.  Movies and TV shows begin streaming in seconds." (Muther, 2013)  We even have DVR that allows us to fast forward through the time consuming and, at times, annoying commercials.  The ability to connect, share, and receive information when and how we would like it has made society extremely impatient. 

Figure 2. Instant?

Think about the last time you waited for a video to load.  How quickly did you refresh the page or try another method when it did not load instantaneously?  How patient were you really?  Due to this instant gratification of information that the Internet and sites such as Twitter are able to provide, we have come to expect things and news to travel at an almost fictional rate.  "Ramesh Sitaraman, a computer science professor at UMass Amherst, examined the viewing habits of 6.7 million Internet users in a study released last fall." (Muther, 2013) Do you want to know how long his subjects were willing to be patient?  It was a mere two seconds.  25% of the subjects abandoned the video after 5 seconds and after 10 seconds that number jumped to half.  "The need for instant gratification is likely to become even more pronounced in the generation born after 2000.  More than 70 percent of children age 8 and under had used a mobile device for some type of media activity (such as playing games, using apps, or watching videos) in 2013, up from 38 percent in 2011..."  As technology and the Internet continue to advance and allow consumers to get information at quicker speeds, they will be less willing to wait and our patience level will only get thinner.  I guess the old saying is true, patience really is a virtue.

I am also going to provide a link to a video here, which explains how people make choices a bit more in depth.  I know that the video is long and there will be temptation to skip through it to get to the end quicker to fulfill the need for that instantaneous gratification, but it is well worth the watch.  I hope you enjoy it and find it as fascinating as I did!

References:

 Alsop, R. (2014, July 17). Instant Gratification & Its Dark Side || Summer 2014 || Bucknell Magazine. Retrieved January 25, 2016, from http://www.bucknell.edu/communications/bucknell-magazine/instant-gratification-and-its-dark-side.html 

Muther, C. (2013, February 2). The growing culture of impatience, where instant gratification makes us crave more instant gratification - The Boston Globe. Retrieved January 25, 2016, fromhttps://www.bostonglobe.com/lifestyle/style/2013/02/01/the-growing-culture-impatience-where-instant-gratification-makes-crave-more-instant-gratification/q8tWDNGeJB2mm45fQxtTQP/story.html 

Perrin, A. (2015, October 08). Social Media Usage: 2005-2015. Retrieved January 25, 2016, fromhttp://www.pewinternet.org/2015/10/08/social-networking-usage-2005-2015/ 

Image:

Instant Gratification. [Jpeg]. Retrieved on January 26, 2016, from https://s3.amazonaws.com/lowres.cartoonstock.com/retail-customer_service-customers-instant_gratifications-retailers-queues-bven202_low.jpg

Meeresapra. Instant? [Jpeg]. Retrieved on January 26, 2016, from http://static.toondoo.com/public/m/e/e/meerasapra/toons/cool-cartoon-2063755.png

Video:

TEDx Talks. (2012, December 14). The Marshmallow Test and Why We Want Instant Gratification. Silvia Barcellos at TEDXMidAtlantic 2012. [Video File].  Retrieved on January 26, 2016, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=voF8B-Jr0mA