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Facebook ShareOn a Christian campus, one would see politeness as a hallmark of interactions with the students, faculty, and employees. However, in the day of facebook and 24-hour texting, some feel that politeness has been pushed aside in the name of progress.
Social norms are changing, as are the ways people relate to one another. “Everything is at our fingertips, from facebook to text messages. Everybody has cell phones,” said freshman Jonathan Sanders. “There are no social norms anymore and we’re mainly informal now. Politeness is definitely going down.”
The change in attitude has been noticeable to Gerald Murphy, a retired Chicago Police officer and 29-year veteran of North Park Security. Murphy said: “Respect has gone way downhill. There is no respect for elders these days. People are much less formal and they feel that they can address an elder as they would a buddy.” When asked how he feels about the change over the years, Murphy responded: “It’s ridiculous.”
Director of Security, Daniel K. Gooris, saw impoliteness on a daily basis while working for the Lincolnwood police department. He worked there for 30 years and has spent the last five years as the chief of police. “I went to North Park a long time ago, and I remember things being much different. Students would say ‘hello’ instead of just nodding to each other,” Gooris said. “Politeness and respect are way down.”
Dormitory policies at North Park have changed since many students’ parents went here. It would have been unheard of thirty years ago to have a co-ed dormitory like Burgh hall, or to have visitation policies extended to 2:00 a.m. on weekends.
People are also much more connected today than years past, with www.facebook.com boasting that they have “more than 56 million American users monthly.” Sophomore Rebekah Burke sees politeness changing in part due to technological advances. “We don’t have to be polite in e-mails. People expect you to be brief,” said Burke. “And text messages are brief too as you only have 160 characters to work with. People are definitely more impolite these days.”
Politeness has been pushed aside in place of connectivity and many disagree with that change. However, becoming more connected is a global phenomenon and North Parkers will see how that changes and challenges them in the future.
This is a very concerning matter. I’ve always believed that with the advent of new technological breakthroughs in social interaction, with it comes the decline of actual social interaction. The people soon forget the necessity of openness and courtesy in a society that is wired 24 hours to the net.
Personally, I am wired to the net all day and night. I am on the internet constantly, I have my Facebook account, and I text message. However, one of the core principles that I was taught growing up was to respect people – especially elders. In a society in which people are becoming less informal – as you describe it – is thanks in part to not only the internet but also through the lack of parental teaching.