Herb Brody, senior editor of "Technology Review", recently interviewed Sherry Turkle, who has established herself as the Margaret Mead of the computer culture. They talked about the pros and cons of using the Internet, and their discussion pointed out the potential of the Internet to enhance:

Human relationships
Personal growth and development
Societal and political impact

Human Relationships:

Using multiple personalities on the Internet is common. In real life, people who exhibit this kind of behavior are psychotic. Yet on the Internet multiple personalities are accepted and considered cool! Ms. Turkle believes that, "People who assume online personalities are aware of the lives they have created on the screen. They are playing different aspects of themselves and move fluidly and knowledgeably among them. That's why I don't get upset that people, even children, are spending a lot of time online. They may be working through important personal issues in the safety of life on the screen."

On the negative side, Turkle believes that, "There are only so many hours in the day, and time spent on a computer is time not spent with friends, family, playing sports, or just reading."

Personal Growth and Development:

Turkle believes that positive online experiences can have an effect on self-esteem and offer possibilities for personal growth - "for developing personal senses of mastery, for forming new kinds of relationships, and for communicating with friends and family all over the world in immediate, even intimate ways." And if the computer is replacing television, "then that may well be an upgrade."

Societal and Political Impact:

Many people are getting involved in one of the Internet's virtual worlds - a multi-user domain (or MUD) where people create characters and build their own virtual living and working spaces as a backdrop for their online social lives. Turkle says, "I would like to see some of the knowledge gained from these efforts used to improve our off-line communications. We need to think of ways to make the resources that are online have a positive impact on real life."

On the negative side, Turkle says, "As one person put it, 'I have more stuff on the MUD than off it.' You don't want to lose a sense of urgency about the state of your city because you feel you have this other ready alternative." Turkle also believes people in our society feel that they can simply "double click" and make all of our social ills go away.

As Instructional Technology professionals it is important that we keep the spotlight on people's capabilities, not machine's. We need to help them make wise choices about the relational, societal, and political aspects we face within the technological world of the Internet.