Has Modern Technology Helped Or Hurt Our Relationships?  

I think the main culprit is TV. Families sit physically together but emotionally separated while they focus on the tube inteadof on one another. The rest of the technology should free us up to spend time together, but all we do is watch TV.

Never thought about it that way .I do think you have a very good point. I am on the computer in the living room my 18 yr. daughter is in her room on the computer we are talking back and forth but not "really talking" we did talk when she got in from work and we do talk alot but I can see what you are saying. We talk on our cell phones but that is briefly so to keep the bill down.Yes I think technology has put a crink in things. But the dishwasher stays :) ... LOL

I agree with you. When the modern technology at one point created more time to sit and talk with our families and actually enjoy the time and not feel to exhausted to listen. We have also lost contact.
Because we have tv with 400 channels, often kids sit in front of the television. They use it as a way to connect to others are school without really connectiing. "Hey, did you watch Beauty and the Geek last night?" "Sure did! I never miss a show!" Yeah, that is a great conversation, right?
But we also have video games. Kids will be in playing video games so much, that even when they are not playing, they are thinking of playing. And because of this, sometimes running from cops or other violent crimes do not seem so harsh because they have been de-sensitized by these games. This is why they have had to put a rating on the games. But some parents buy the games anyways.
Why? Because maybe that parent is too busy playing on the computer. Chatting with people or playing their games that are more stress relieving after a long hard day at work.
Essentially, everyone will be home, but no one is talking. And if they are talking, they are not talking and sharing thoughts and feelings.
I do set aside time for my kids. But I am guilty too of being on the computer.
There are times though that we have sat like a family all laughing and joking. And they do get this from me more than their father because their father is not as availble as I am.
But yes, you do have a point about not talking in this world we are in today.

Besides technology making our daily chores faster it has also been more expensive to pay for the newest thing... that means that people have to work more outside the home.

This actually reminds me of a story... This summer my three kids and I were in our backyard when we noticed a man walking around our neighbors house looking at their roof. He left a flier on their door and started looking at our roof. He saw me watching him and entered our backyard.
He began asking me questions about if we had a satelite dish or cable TV. I said neither. He replied that according to his paperwork we were not Mediacom customers so what kind of service did we have? I said that we just used the antenna and so we get ABC and NBC. He stared at me in disbelief.
He then presented his case for us to become Mediacom customers. I polietely told him we weren't interested. The salesmen in him came out and he asked me about our internet connection and I told him that we have dial up. He then offered us a different service so that I wouldn't have to have my cell phone on when I used the internet. I laughed and told him that I didn't have a cell phone.
He stared at me like I was an alien! Who doesn't have at least cable TV and a cell phone and who in their right mind would use a dial up connection to the internet.
I then challenged him ... I have free TV right now, I get long distance for $25 a month and pay $10 for dial up. That means for all three my monthly bill is $35 and if he could offer me his product for $35 a month then I would be willing to change.
He walked away shaking his head.
I stay home with my children and my husband works hard enough as it is without paying for these other "must haves" ...
There are more important things in life then material possessions.

I wouldn't say they are any better or any worse . We love them because we are so used to what we have but when we didn't have them we didn't miss them because we didn't know anything about them . It is true that we have lost some of that family quality time that we may have shared in some ways but in other ways we are still together just by doing different things .

Agreed it would seem that technology would allow us to spend more time one on one however our lives become busier, busier. We each have things that pull at us and demand our time. The crime is due to 2 parents working, less structure in young children's lives and the stuff we see on television and video games. Those things numb us to the realness of other people. Children often do no chores either. While technology has helped us in many ways it has also made human lives more difficult. If we are vigilant perhaps we can begin to reverse this trend and make for better lives for everyone!

I disagree that technology is to blame, however, I will grant that many families do not spend enough quality time together. I know mine never did. I mean they'd have gatherings when I was a kid but it wasn't family time. It was grown up time. Us kids were always left out and the few kids there were in my family were either considerably younger or colder than me. I do believe that spending quality time together is essential to the development of strong family bonds and will help the overall well being of any child. I intend to make lots of quality time for my kids when that time comes and they will know what a real mother is like, rather than a negligent one who only spends time with the kids when it suits them.

It seems the more options for communicating that we have, the less we use them for more than just a few grunts here and there.I've known people in the same household to use their cell phones to contact the spouse that's in the kitchen to see how much ice cream is left in the freezer,I mean.. get up and move ,for the love of God, modern technology has cut down on actual communication and excercise,lol.

Another thing I see with all the technology is what I call the 'impatient phenomonon.' It seems we want everything NOW. I see young kids getting married and they want all that their parents have immediately, without having to work for it! With everything being 'instant' we seem to want things in our relationships and all aspects of our life to be 'instant' as well. In the past, as you say, there was no instant heating of leftovers in the microwave. One carried the laundry outside and stood there clothespinning each piece to the line and later went back to retrieve the clothes! Sending words of well-wish to the sick meant baking muffins and going to the store for a card, or heaven forbid..writing a letter, but now we fire off an email. Perhaps in our relationships we are now impatient as a result of all this? When things aren't instant or require a 'pulling together' we can't handle it! I seriously belive that families were stronger before all the 'instant.'

Some technology allows us to spend more time together instead of slaving over household chores. But I agree that TV, internet, and whatever else can distract us and keep us from spending quality time together just talking. We only have 2 TVs, instead of one in every room like many do. We also have lately made an effort to spend less time on watching TV and more time reading, talking and just being with each other in a more quiet environment.