The World Wide Web, like any other technological advances, has advantages and disadvantages.
One very evident advantage of the internet is E-epowerment. That is, people who weren't blessed with inter-personal skills or charisma have another opportunity, another window to connect with the rest of the world. They feel empowered that thay can pick and choose what image to present, what to expose and how. One can present their strong qualities instantly, as
opposed to a face-to-face encounter where some qualities are naturally exposed at first, and others are only later revealed, providing that person is given the time of day to do so.
In today's society, this is more acute than ever, when appearance and image have become so important. As stated above, some aren't given the time of day because of these external qualities and they don't get a chance to show the strong internal qualities.
In this case, the internet can work wonders for people like this and can serve as a healthy and productive platform for interaction. It can allow one to enter circles of interest they otherwise may not have been able to because of factors that are considered paramount today
This solution is extremely important when considering the vicious circle that can be created in its absence. This means that if one is naturally unconfident and timid, the disapproval of others may deepen this feeling and make it even worse. It's a spiral effect and people may lose out by not being able to show their real selves, and society is missing out too by never getting to know these people.
This argument is very convincing and this has helped many people to develop behind the computer screen and break through when they get the confidence to do so, when they are 'ready to face the music'. However, what about those who never break through? What about those who experience such popularity on the internet and this prevents them from developing true social skills? These people may become overly-dependent on the computer and won't have to ever develop these skills because they've created a virtual identity and possibly, a virtual circle of admirers or friends.
This is a sinister thought and isn't so far fetched- very ironically today there are more means of communication than ever, but people don't communicate anymore.The art of discourse and debate have been highly challenged by these developments in technology, there is less interaction than ever before.
Therefore, if one can use the internet as a stage to reframe their identity, and use it just to heighten their confidence, that's ok. It's ok as long as the person knows how to break through when they are ready and face their fellow human beings
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