Reflections on leaving Facebook
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Reflections on leaving Facebook
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[ID] => 559788
[post_author] => 12815
[post_date] => 2025-01-03 13:10:01
[post_date_gmt] => 2025-01-03 18:10:01
[post_content] => Practice Passage (Question 1-6)
*This passage is the property of Khan Academy and has been reformatted into an AAMC-style interface in their entirety by MedLife Mastery. MedLife Mastery does not endorse and is not an affiliate of Khan Academy.
On 13 August 2009 I deactivated my Facebook social networking account. The world remained on its axis but Facebook’s slightly sinister prediction that my friends would miss me turned out to be correct. A torrent of emails and text messages arrived in the days following, asking where I had gone. Many asked me to justify why I left, some out of curiosity and some out of shock.
What most concerns me is not primarily a privacy issue, in the sense of concerns about the availability of one’s private information in the public domain — though this is a part of it. Instead, I will describe a psychological problem that results from an ontological consideration of identity online and a phenomenological account of encountering the other. As Ken Hillis argues, the online avatar — and I use this term loosely to include the Facebook profile — is not identical with the user. Although the user identifies with this avatar, there is a distance maintained between the two; the avatar is a middle-ground between image and agent. This is a simple point. However, things start to get more complicated when we consider what this means for encounters between users. If the user is not identical with their avatar, then they are in a relation with only that avatar and the other user’s avatar when communicating or interacting online.
In terms of voyeurism, the result is, I believe, that the main issue is not that of the user being watched, but of the user doing the watching. First, it is obviously the case that users can control what content they post on their profiles. Second, given that the avatar is not identical with the user, what is being seen by the voyeur is not only controlled content but exists at a remove from the other user. As such, the other user remains out of sight; the user cannot enter into a direct relation with the other user, only with the other user’s avatar. Given these conditions, the problem of voyeurism lies in the direction of voyeurism from the user to the other user’s avatar; again: it is the watching not the being watched that is the main cause of concern.
Facebook allows us to gather substantial amounts of information about other people — people we know to varying degrees. More than this, it makes possible the monitoring of communications between different people, communications that may or may not have anything to do with the person who has access to them. Also, and perhaps the most uncomfortable element, it is possible to see the photograph albums of users who are not ‘friends’ — in either the traditional or Facebook sense of the word — if they are commented upon by those who are. We are in danger of sleepwalking into a state of voyeurism, whereby we cease to see the difference between what ought to be seen and what can be seen. Without wanting to exaggerate the point, this somnambulist voyeurism represents a perturbing psychological phenomenon; this desire/need to watch others is a disturbing anxiety, an unhealthy and inauthentic relationship with others.
[post_title] => Reflections on leaving Facebook
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[post_modified] => 2025-01-03 13:10:01
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[questions] => Array
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[0] => Array
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[quiz_unique_key] => 578908434
[question] => The passage suggests that the author would LEAST likely opt to become an online user on which of the following?
[value] => Array
(
[answer] => 1
[description] => Reason for the Correct Answer:
This is a “Reasoning Beyond the Text” question, which means that it wants you to either apply or extrapolate the ideas in the passage to new situations or to assess how new information would impact the ideas presented in the passage. It is important to understand the assumptions underlying the article, and how new information may or may not shift the central thesis.
Paragraph 2 discusses the author’s problem with voyeurism on Facebook. In paragraph 3 he writes, “this somnambulist voyeurism represents a perturbing psychological phenomenon; this desire/need to watch others is a disturbing anxiety, an unhealthy and inauthentic relationship with others.” The passage takes issue with the way that people relate to one another on Facebook and the culture of voyeurism that is promoted. A professional networking site allowing the exchange of career related information for pragmatic purposes (option 3) is much less personal than Facebook. An open-source online encyclopedia (option 2) is largely an anonymous exchange of factual information about the world and not oneself. A gardening forum (option 4) ) is also likely to be used as a mechanism for the exchange of factual information on a more narrowly focused topic. On the other hand, a chatroom where political topics are debated by individuals is most likely to involve personal information. Political topics relate to people’s most personal beliefs, emotions, morals, and ideas. Thus, such chat rooms are most similar to Facebook in terms of being able to view personal information about other people, and interact with them without having an authentic relationship (option 1).
Option 1 is correct.
)
[answers] => Array
(
[0] => Array
(
[each_answer] => A. A chatroom where political topics are debated.
)
[1] => Array
(
[each_answer] => B. An open source encyclopedia written collaboratively by users.
)
[2] => Array
(
[each_answer] => C. A professional networking site where people post their resumes.
)
[3] => Array
(
[each_answer] => D. A forum where users ask and receive gardening advice.
)
)
)
[1] => Array
(
[quiz_unique_key] => 3873426850
[question] => Which of the following passage assertions does the author present as evidence that Facebook users do not have authentic social interactions?
[value] => Array
(
[answer] => 1
[description] => Reason for the Correct Answer:
This is a “Reasoning Within the Text” question. These items generally ask you to think about the author’s reasoning, such as what claim an author is trying to support with a piece of evidence, what assumption underlies a specific statement, or whether an argument is flawed.
In paragraph 2, the author makes it clear that privacy issues are a separate concern apart from the inauthenticity of social interactions on Facebook (option 2). Options 3 and 4 not relevant to the author’s argument that the social interaction between Facebook users is not authentic. In fact, option 4 may be evidence of the opposite. The author had authentic friendships on Facebook and when he left, they noticed. The author highlights the fact that users can see into the personal lives (e.g. photo albums) of other user avatars they do not know personally (option 1). Thus, the users are able to interact with other people without any actual or authentic social relationship.
Option 1 is correct.
)
[answers] => Array
(
[0] => Array
(
[each_answer] => A. It is possible to see the photo albums of users who are not ‘Friends’.
)
[1] => Array
(
[each_answer] => B. Facebook users often have little control over their privacy.
)
[2] => Array
(
[each_answer] => C. Users gather substantial information about other users.
)
[3] => Array
(
[each_answer] => D. The author was bombarded with emails questioning why he left.
)
)
)
[2] => Array
(
[quiz_unique_key] => 83407773
[question] => Which of the following BEST represents the author’s central concern about using Facebook?
[value] => Array
(
[answer] => 2
[description] => Reason for the Correct Answer:
This is a “Foundations of Comprehension” question which is asking you to recognize an accurate paraphrase or summary of the central theme or of particular statements in the passage, or to interpret word choices made by the author.
Paragraph 2 states that the avatar is not identical to the user, and that there is distance maintained between the user and the avatar (option 1). However, the idea of the avatar’s relationship to the user is only a building block to the author’s main concern with Facebook. The author goes on to discuss the idea of unidirectional voyeurism, and writes that “the main issue is not that of the user being watched, but of the user doing the watching.” The remainder of the passage laments how the user, due to the social configuration created by the avatar, is able to “gather substantial amounts” of carefully curated information about other people without any direct social interaction at all. Thus, the fact that users do not directly communicate (option 3) is only a smaller component of this larger central argument. In sum, the problem of voyeurism subsumes both the issues of inaccuracy of avatar and indirectness of communication. The author says at the beginning of paragraph 2 that privacy (option 4) is not the main reason that he chose to leave Facebook.
Option 2 is correct.
)
[answers] => Array
(
[0] => Array
(
[each_answer] => A. The avatar is not an accurate representation of the actual user.
)
[1] => Array
(
[each_answer] => B. Facebook is an unhealthy culture of voyeurism with no direct interaction.
)
[2] => Array
(
[each_answer] => C. Users do not actually communicate with one another directly.
)
[3] => Array
(
[each_answer] => D. There are no boundaries between what is personal and private.
)
)
)
[3] => Array
(
[quiz_unique_key] => 872728905
[question] => Based on the passage, the author most likely believes the most meaningful social interactions are:
[value] => Array
(
[answer] => 1
[description] => Reason for the Correct Answer:
This is a “Foundations of Comprehension” question which is asking you to recognize an accurate paraphrase or summary of the central theme or of particular statements in the passage, or to interpret word choices made by the author.
The author’s main concern has to do with voyeurism, which is one-sided and involves no direct social interaction (option 1). The author never argues that meaningful social interaction requires an open mind (option 4) or strong emotion (option 2), or that the main problem is that the avatar is not similar enough to the user (option 3). Even if the avatar were similar to the user, the problem of voyeurism would not go away. Meaningful social interaction, according to the author, requires getting to know more about someone through direct social connection.
Option 1 is correct.
)
[answers] => Array
(
[0] => Array
(
[each_answer] => A. direct and mutual
)
[1] => Array
(
[each_answer] => B. in-depth and emotional
)
[2] => Array
(
[each_answer] => C. based on an authentic avatar
)
[3] => Array
(
[each_answer] => D. with an open mind
)
)
)
[4] => Array
(
[quiz_unique_key] => 3143847772
[question] => Which of the following issues does the author fail to consider in his reasoning?
[value] => Array
(
[answer] => 2
[description] => Reason for the Correct Answer:
This is a “Reasoning Within the Text” question. These items generally ask you to think about the author’s reasoning, such as what claim an author is trying to support with a piece of evidence, what assumption underlies a specific statement, or whether an argument is flawed.
The author begins by observing that his friends on Facebook missed him and conveyed concern and distress when he left the site. This suggests that the author is considering that users can care about the other users they interact with (option 1). Although much of the passage is about “voyeurism”, the main concern is not a lack of privacy, but that people are watching an unreal representation of others that they do not truly know. The author does discuss how users can protect their privacy because “users can control what content they post on their profiles” (option 3). The author assumes that users “are in a relation with only that avatar and the other user’s avatar when communicating or interacting online”. It is this means of communication that represents “an unhealthy and inauthentic relationship with others.” This argument presumes that the online interactions are the extent of these relationships. If users have a prior real life close relationship (option 2), then they are interacting with the real person they know while online. The avatars are incidental, like a phone number, and do not prevent an authentic and direct relationship any more than talking over the phone.
Option 2 is correct.
)
[answers] => Array
(
[0] => Array
(
[each_answer] => A. That Facebook friends can actually care about each other.
)
[1] => Array
(
[each_answer] => B. That many Facebook interactions are between people with close relationships in real life.
)
[2] => Array
(
[each_answer] => C. That users can protect their privacy against unwanted voyeurs.
)
[3] => Array
(
[each_answer] => D. All of the above.
)
)
)
[5] => Array
(
[quiz_unique_key] => 3143847772
[question] => According to the views of the passage author, which one of the following Facebook users would be MOST concerning?
[value] => Array
(
[answer] => 2
[description] => Reason for the Correct Answer:
This is a “Reasoning Beyond the Text” question, which means that it wants you to either apply or extrapolate the ideas in the passage to new situations or to assess how new information would impact the ideas presented in the passage. It is important to understand the assumptions underlying the article, and how new information may or may not shift the central thesis.
The main basis for the author’s concerns is that “the avatar is not identical with the user”, therefore “the other user remains out of sight; the user cannot enter into a direct relation with the other user, only with the other user’s avatar.” Although the concerned mother (option 1) is engaging in unilateral voyeurism on Facebook, , she presumably has an authentic relationship with her daughter. Similarly, the person who interacts only with real life friends and family (option 3) would not be concerned because her Facebook relationships are not limited to only knowing the person as represented by their avatar. The pining user would be the most concerning to the author, because he is watching the avatar and developing strong feelings for someone he doesn’t know on a personal level at all (option 2). The author’s main concerns about inauthentic relationships do not seem relevant to using Facebook for marketing (option 4).
Option 2 is correct.
)
[answers] => Array
(
[0] => Array
(
[each_answer] => A. A user monitors the activity of her 18-year old daughter, who just left for college.
)
[1] => Array
(
[each_answer] => B. A user pines after his love interest, who doesn’t know he exists.
)
[2] => Array
(
[each_answer] => C. A user limits her Facebook interactions to only real life family and friends.
)
[3] => Array
(
[each_answer] => D. A user markets his comic book company on his profile to attract readers.
)
)
)
)
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[559788|1] => A
[559788|2] => A
[559788|3] => B
[559788|4] => A
[559788|5] => B
[559788|6] => B
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