Industrial revolution has caused major changes not only in the life style and living standards of the people but also in the realm of social interaction. These changes carry both positive and negative impacts on social interaction. For example the increase in use of mobile phone should not be seen as an enhancement to social interactions but also carries some negative attributes. It has led to nomadic intimacy and cyberspace virtual interaction. Depending on how we use them, they always carry some consequences (Andersen, Taylor 114).
There are different interaction problems that have been encountered in USA. They include; poverty, homelessness, urban crime, race and ethnicity and macro level problems. These factors have always made the relations between people become anomic.
Poverty is a major factor in this case which divides people into social strata; poor or rich. According to the Census Bureau, poverty has been on the rise in the recent past where about 2.6 million people slipped into poverty (United States Conference of Mayors 22). This factor has led formation of social groups the Hispanians and the blacks, where the blacks are the most hit by poverty. In this case there is little communication between the poor and the rich.
The poor retire to a culture of poverty which is passed from generation to generation thus making it hard to change. They feel negative, hopeless, inferior and powerless. Studies have revealed that poor families which experience more stress are always allied to violence in families (Bassuk et al. 25).
Homelessness is another factor which has led to a series of social interaction problems. Extreme poverty leads to homelessness, and this is mostly experienced by young children.
Its inception comes with health problems and poor nutrition. Although it has reduced considerably in many states in USA, a lasting solution is yet to be found (United States Conference of Mayors 13). 1.6 million American children or one in 45 of them are homeless in the year 2010 (Bassuk et al. 32).
Forty percent of these children are age six and under. It hurts both children and other people in many ways including; brain development, stress, parenting, school readiness and health and well being. According to researchers, homeless families experience many social interaction problems as compared to stable ones (Bassuk et al. 33).
Urban crime is another major cause of social interaction problems both to the offender and the offended. These crimes include; rape, theft, robbery and murder. Victimization in USA is also a major problem which divides people into groups.
Blacks are being victimized more than whites and this high rate of incarceration of blacks has led to social interaction problems between the two groups (Ferrante 182). The blacks’ families have fewer males who are supposed to take leadership roles. Crime rate is directly linked to drug use. Most of those people who have been found to have committed crime are drug users.
Ethnicity is the classification of people into groups basing on cultural and physical characteristics while race is categorization of people basing on anatomical traits. American ethnic groups include; American Indians, Latinos, Chinese, African Americans, Hispanians and European Americans.
Race and Ethnicity has affected the provision of various social services in the country (Ferrante 214). For example, there are disparities in access to health care and education. Placing people into various groups makes the social interaction across these groups impossible. As a result, problems arise.
Macro level problems originate from social structure, social processes of the people and their interrelationships. For instance the industrialization effects on older people’s status (Andersen, Margaret & Taylor 112). Most of the people in USA are currently working and they usually don’t have extra time for face to face socialization with their relatives.
Instead, most have opted to rely on cyberspace interaction which provides them with virtual interaction. Old people and young children suffer most because they are taken to care institutions where they will not have time to interact with their relatives. Virtual interaction is a dangerous thing because they can be created imaginatively.
In conclusion, the recent industrial revolution has solved some problems of social interaction and created more (Andersen, Margaret &Taylor 115). Each invention has its own weaknesses and strengths.
Works Cited
Andersen, Margaret L., Taylor Howard F. Sociology: Understanding a diverse society. Boston: Cengage Learning, 2005.
Bassuk, Ellen L., Murphy, Christina., Coupe, Thompson N., Kenney, Rachael R., & Beach, Anne C. State report card on child homelessness: America’s youngest outcasts 2010 . 2011. Retrieved from National Center on Family homelessness website
Ferrante, Joan. Sociology: A Global Perspective. Boston: Cengage Learning, 2012.
United States Conference of Mayors (2009, December). Hunger and homelessness survey: A status report on hunger and homelessness in America’s cities: A 27-city survey. 2011.7