Effects of internet usage on daily life

The internet revolution has positively facilitated many aspects of daily life to an extent that life seems impossible without internet now. May that be travel, study, shopping, health & fitness, local or global communication, earning, or even entertaining one’s own self with games and movies at the convenience of one’s own bedroom, internet plays its significant role to facilitate human beings far more effectively and efficiently than ever before. The purpose of this essay is to explain the positive effects of internet in facilitating our daily life with specific reference to its role in travel and tours, health, and shopping. This essay will first explain how internet is helping to facilitate in traveling. Then the significant role of internet in helping human beings to live a healthy life. Lastly, the essay will elaborate how internet is facilitating us in our shopping requirements. Based on the explanations and evidences provided regarding the significance of internet in the above three aspects of our daily life, the essay will be concluded.

Role of Internet in Travel and Tourism

The advancements in information technology, enhanced computer networks, innovative google maps all brought together by the power of internet have not only revolutionized the new way of communication but has brought the users virtually too close to form a global village (Gates, 1999). Internet has supported critical and complex functions of tourism. Tourism companies build their websites in order to easily share information and offers with their clients. On the other hand, clients have easy access to valuable travel and tourism information. This information not only helps tourism companies to reach more and more clients, but also facilitates tourists and travelers to find the most economical and feasible options among many available (Batinic, 2013). Moreover, interactive google maps and navigation options help travelers and tourists easily reach their destinations within lesser time and far easier than they could before the internet facilitated digital maps. The intelligent google maps can handle from scheduling complete tours to traffic and congestion forecasts. Hence, internet has revolutionized travel and tourism to the best facilitation of human being today.

Role of Internet in Healthcare and Fitness

Internet has made it possible for anybody with internet access to explore latest, authentic, and productive healthcare and fitness information. In fact, internet has proven to be the most effective and economical medium for health education. Ruiz, Mintzer, and Leipzig (2006) found the use of e-learning to be very effective in health education and learning. More importantly, use of internet has been proved to be more effective intervention in order to help individuals change their health behaviors. Specifically designed health intervention systems not convey useful health information for various health conditions, but also provide decisional support and communication with health experts as well as other users. Lieberman et al. (2003), Napolitano et al. (2003) Lindström et al. (2006), and many other studies have proven the significance of online health interventions in helping patients with serious health conditions, like breast cancer, type 2 diabetes, and extreme mental health conditions. Another way in which internet has been helping in healthcare is provision of social interaction among patients with similar backgrounds and health issues. These communications are in the forms of health forums and bulletin boards which patients may post their problems or experiences for other to read and respond. Love et al. (2012) and Mo and Coulson (2008) in their studies on effects of online social interactions among patients with similar backgrounds and/or common health problems found very frequent and effective exchange of informational and emotional support over these forums and groups. They explored very positive outcomes of using these online support groups. The outcomes included better mental health, better quality of life, and willingness to adopt active coping strategies. Besides these interventions and knowledge sharing, internet has been the fastest medium to share information in the form of text, images, and videos regarding various fitness programs, diet plans, and exercises. The ability to share and access information in all possible formats makes it possible to understand health and fitness requirements in more effective way. Hence internet has proven to be crucial in promoting and supporting healthcare around the globe.

Role of Internet in shopping

The formation of global market for the global village could never be possible without the development of internet powered e-commerce. It is because of the internet that one can buy literally anything from almost any corner of the world online through internet. The very existence of Amazon, EBay, AliExpress, AliBaba, IBM business model and plentiful others has been possible only and only due to the internet. Traditional shopping allowed customers to select and purchase from a very limited variety of products produced by limited number of manufacturers. Nobody could ever imagine to go online, select a product manufactured in one corner of the world, purchase it and get it shipped to their doorstep. Internet has enabled customers to exercise more “buyers’ power of bargaining” as well as compelled local manufacturing and retail firms to consider either optimizing their pricing strategies or work on better quality of products.

In addition to facilitating consumers in terms of providing them access to products from a wide variety of products produced by a variety of manufacturers from around the world, the internet has also provided an equal support to the manufacturers to enter into global competition by virtually reducing distances between manufacturers and consumers. Amazon and EBay virtual shops are examples of this support. Research shows that more and more international firms are entering into this global market.

Moreover, internet technology has changed the overall ways the business is done. It is found that firms are investing more and more into digital marketing than the traditional marketing methods. IBM’s business model proves the power of internet in customer relations and sales functions. Similarly, virtual teams around the world have been found to perform various business operations via internet. Software industry has been the most prominent where team members from various part of the world work together on producing a single product. Almost every business and commerce revolution has been possible due to the existence of internet technology.

Conclusion

From the above discussion it can be concluded that internet has revolutionized almost every aspect of human life. The role and significance of internet technology and its use cannot be denied. This technology has helped humanity in improved health and fitness. It has facilitated both businesses and consumers to come closer. Internet has helped access to quality products with optimized pricing by breaking the borders between markets of the world. Similarly, the modern travel and tourism development can only be credited to the power of internet. In short, internet has played the most significant role in the improved quality of life for humans that they are enjoying today.

 

 

References

Batinic, I. (2013). The role and importance of the Internet in contemporary tourism in travel agencies business. International Journal of Cognitive Research in Science, Engineering and Education (IJCRSEE), 1(2), 119-122.

Gates, B. (1999). Poslovanje brzinom  misli, Zagreb, Izvori,1999.

Lieberman, M. A., Golant, M., Giese‐Davis, J., Winzlenberg, A., Benjamin, H., Humphreys, K. & Spiegel, D. (2003). Electronic support groups for breast carcinoma. Cancer, 97(4), 920-925.

Ruiz, J. G., Mintzer, M. J., & Leipzig, R. M. (2006). The impact of e-learning in medical education. Academic medicine, 81(3), 207-212.

Lindstrom, J., Ilanne-Parikka, P., Peltonen, M., Aunola, S., Eriksson, J. G., Hemio, K., … & Louheranta, A. (2006). Sustained reduction in the incidence of type 2 diabetes by lifestyle intervention: follow-up of the Finnish Diabetes Prevention Study.

Love, B., Crook, B., Thompson, C. M., Zaitchik, S., Knapp, J., LeFebvre, L. & Rechis, R. (2012). Exploring psychosocial support online: a content analysis of messages in an adolescent and young adult cancer community. Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking, 15(10), 555-559.

Mo, P. K., & Coulson, N. S. (2008). Exploring the communication of social support within virtual communities: a content analysis of messages posted to an online HIV/AIDS support group. Cyberpsychology & behavior, 11(3), 371-374.

Napolitano, M. A., Fotheringham, M., Tate, D., Sciamanna, C., Leslie, E., Owen, N., & Marcus, B. (2003). Evaluation of an internet-based physical activity intervention: a preliminary investigation. Annals of Behavioral Medicine, 25(2), 92-99.