Technology and Family Life

According to Billingsley, numerous changes have occurred in the Afro-American families over the past few decades. Some of these transformations include the drastic drop in the percentage of African Americans doing blue collar jobs and the rise of both the middle and underclass. Billingsley key aim was the advancement of the argument that the various crises that the African American families witness might have been caused by the technological revolution that found its way into the United States immediately after the second world war. The author argues that the transition in the nature of jobs handled by the various Afro-American groups was accelerated by the change to an information society from an industrial society. The bottom-line of Billingsley’s article is that technology has tremendously transformed the lifestyles of Afro-African families.

Covey, Martin. “Introduction: Technology and Families.” Michigan Family Review 11, no. 1 (2006).

            Covey acknowledges that advancements in technology have transformed people’s lifestyles, the various ways in which business transactions are done, learning, shopping, reading, and a myriad of other activities that impact human life. The article focusses on the exploration of the various changes made by technology in human lives. Covey utilizes a typical example of the ways of accessing his article. “Introduction: Technology and Families” can either be accessed as a soft copy or hard copy. An interested party can drive to the nearest library and search for the article on the web. Therefore, technology has a role in human lifestyle. The article’s key limitation is its failure to provide a direct connection between technology and specific domestic activities and general family living.

Hertlein, Katherine M. “Digital dwelling: Technology in couple and family relationships.” Family Relations 61, no. 3 (2012): 374-387.

            According to Hertlein, the number of computers sold by 2010 was estimated to have been 170 million. The trends of PCs being acquired indicate that people are increasingly being absorbed by technology. Hertlein’s key objective was the investigation of the various ways in which families and couples’ communication, intimacy patterns, and human behavior have been affected in the information age. The author utilized a multitheoretical model to provide a solid connection between communication and family and couple life. Hertlein establishes that new technology affects the daily routines and rhythms of families and couples thereby facilitating their relationships.

Ley, Benedikt, Corinna Ogonowski, Jan Hess, Tim Reichling, Lin Wan, and Volker Wulf. “Impacts of New Technologies on Media Usage and Social Behaviour in Domestic Environments.” Behaviour & Information Technology, 33, no. 8 (2013): 815–828., doi:10.1080/0144929x.2013.832383.

            New media technology has tremendously transformed the consumption and sharing of media in different contexts. Ley et al. note that unlike the traditional mass media that was hugely dominated by the television, current media comprises of a myriad of options to their users. Connectivity to the internet is one such opportunity given to the users of current mass media. Ley et al. aimed at discussing the implications of new technology to the use of the different media and social behavior of individuals within the domestic setup. The survey’s findings indicate that modern technology has transformed personal routines and social systems in both positive and negative ways.

Moreira, Teresa Coelho. ”The impact of new technologies in balancing private and family life with working time.“ Labour & Law Issues 3, no. 1 (2017): 1-31.

            Moreira acknowledges that work-life balance is crucial to the individuals of the working class due to its connection to the quality of work, active aging, and gender equality. Technology use in a workplace encourages flexibility that can lead to the encroachment of the family and private lives of employees. Moreira also notes that the digital age promotes the notion that work can be done in any place at any time thereby increasing the workloads given to employees. The article concludes that even though technology has numerous positive implications on different aspects of life, it negatively affects the work-life balance of female employees who play instrumental roles in most families.