Technology contributes to making our lives easier, but could also make us more understanding, tolerant, charitable and open-minded.
This is among the findings from global research undertaken by Lenovo, that polled more than 15 000 people from the US, Mexico, Brazil, China, India, Japan, UK, Germany, France and Italy.
The survey revealed that nine out of ten respondents (89%) think that technology plays a large role in their day-to-day lives. Meanwhile, 84% said that technology improves their lives.
Although we might presume the main ways in which technology impacts our lives is by helping us achieve our daily tasks – such as emails, streaming and so on – Lenovo’s research found that, in many cases, technology is actually having a strong impact on our human values.
For example, 38% of global respondents believe smart devices such as PCs, tablets, smartphones and VR are making people more open-minded and tolerant.
Meanwhile, over a third (35%) believe technology is making us more understanding and empathetic.
It is likely that the rise of social media and video sharing platforms are key to this, allowing people to connect with those from other countries and cultures, gaining an insight into their lives through social posts, video and other content.
The window into the world of other people’s lives through technology is also a key contributor of the 70% of respondents who believe technology makes us more “curious”.
The study also found that a third (32%) of people are of the opinion that technology makes us more charitable. This is likely the result of the increased prevalence of charitable giving platforms which allow people to make donations online, as well as enabling people to share their charitable endeavors via social platforms.
Respondents to the survey also believe emerging technologies could have an even more significant impact on our values in the future.
Indeed, two-thirds (66%) say that VR has the potential to cultivate empathy and understanding, and help people be more emotionally connected with people across the globe by allowing them to see the world through their eyes.
The global nature of this survey has meant that interesting differences can be found around the world.
In particular, Brazil, Russia, India and China appear to have the most faith in the ability of technology to positively impact our values. For example, 90% of respondents in China think VR has the ability to increase human understanding, whilst that figure is 88% in India and 81% in Brazil. By comparisons, just 51% believe this to be true in Japan, a country that is rather technologically advanced, whilst the lowest figure is in Germany (48%).
One respondent in the study remarked: “VR would give those who think the world is perfect an insight into other people’s world and make them realize the pain and suffering some people have to endure in their daily lives.”
There are, of course two sides to every coin, and some respondents do feel that technology can instead divide people. For example, 60% of respondents in the survey agreed that tech makes people more judgmental of others, especially through the lens of social media.
The “immediate” nature of the internet also has some side-effects. For example, 43% of respondents believe that technology is making us less ‘patient’, while 59% said it can make us “lazy” and 49% said that it can make us “selfish”.
Psychologist,Jocelyn Brewer comments: “Technology is often blamed for eroding empathy, the innate ability most humans are born with to identify and understand each other’s emotions and experiences.
“However, when we harness technological advances for positive purposes, it can help promote richer experiences that develop empathetic concern and leverage people into action on causes that matter to them,” she adds.
“Developing the ability to imagine and connect with the experiences and perspectives of a broad range of diverse people can help build mental wealth and foster deeper, more meaningful relationships. Technology can be used to supplement our connections, not necessarily serve as the basis of them.”
Dilip Bhatia, vice-president: user and customer experience at Lenovo, comments: “In many ways society is becoming more polarised as many of us are surrounded by those who share similar views and opinions. This can reinforce both rightly and wrongly held views and lead to living in somewhat of an echo chamber.
“We believe smarter technology has the power to intelligently transform people’s world view, putting them in the shoes of others and allowing them to experience life through their eyes – leading to a greater understanding of the world and the human experience.
“This could be through using smart technology to connect people from diverse backgrounds or allowing you to literally see their world in VR. The more open we are to diversity in the world around us, the more empathetic we can be as human beings – and that is a good thing.”