Social communication disorder and network concept

With the development of communication we have adopted different ways of communicating, since they have been disrupted both in time and space of social relationships, daily life and social ties. There came a time when the social sciences found their paradigms out of date, and the insufficiency of the theoretical tools linked to social change led to the creation of new concepts such as the concept of the network, thus challenging the different transformations of social life.

Different meanings of the concept of network

As a methodology, the network is a methodological instrument for research, and a tool for intervention in society used by different disciplines such as psychology , anthropology, sociology, among others.

Through this simple and at the same time complex concept, relationships can be detected within the different institutions that are not in their organization chart, relationships that function in parallel and informally, and non-institutionalized and informal behaviors.

Also through the concept of network we can approach the study of complex contemporary phenomena. And if our objective is to carry out a sociometric analysis with a strong quantitative imprint, this concept can also be useful for the measurement of different social groups.

Effects of social media on behavior

Most people spend half their day connected to their devices; either, surfing the net or checking the notifications of your applications. Facebook ranks highest on all social media platforms, followed by WhatsApp, Twitter, Instagram, and other social apps. Children, for their part, also absorb that technology-dependent behavior that they see in adults.

Today children are exposed from a very early age to the use of technology; But this is not to say that it should become the center of your entertainment. The American Academy of Pediatrics has warned of the potential harm social media can do to young children and teens , including cyberbullying. But the same risks can also occur in adults, across generations.

Some people who use social media excessively can become addicted to it and suffer from a psychological disorder of addiction to social networks. Addiction criteria, such as neglect of personal life, mental preoccupation, experiences that modify mood and tolerance, can be considered symptoms of this disorder.

It has been shown that people addicted to technology and to the use of social networks, present frequent mental states of depression and anxiety, accompanied by feelings of anguish and concern when they are prevented from using them.

Isolation is another of the negative effects caused by the excessive use of social networks. This occurs especially in adolescents, who find in these networks a virtual world that replaces their real world. Some people with introversion or who have problems to relate socially, can find in this virtual world a company that helps them to relate to people through the web. The more relationships online they build, the further they get away from the real world.

Social communication disorder

Social communication disorder is characterized by difficulty in using language and social communication skills. Children or adolescents with this disorder may have difficulty following social communication rules, following storytelling rules, or having conversations with other people.

This type of communication disorder can be diagnosed from 5 years of age -ending the phallic stage and beginning the latency period- , since to detect it, children must have adequate speech and language skills.

A social communication disorder can create persistent difficulties for children to communicate effectively with peers and others, limit their social participation, and can even affect their academic performance.

Causes of social communication disorder

The exact causes that can cause this type of disorder are not yet known; Experts estimate that it may be due to the existence of a genetic factor or to a failure in the right hemisphere of the brain, which makes it more difficult for children to process verbal and visual information at the same time. It could also be caused by exposure to toxins during pregnancy, such as toxic substances or environmental toxins such as lead.

Various studies have been carried out that show that those in families where a member has been diagnosed with a communication disorder are predisposed to suffer from it. However, since this is a recent diagnosis, there is still room for further research before the causes of this disorder can be definitively established.

Characteristic signs of social communication disorder

A social communication disorder can present different symptoms, even in some cases these can be antagonistic from one person to another. Among the most frequent signs we can highlight:

• Difficulties in the use of communication for social purposes, such as greeting or sharing information necessary for social relations.
• Impaired ability to change communication, for example, difficulty speaking differently to a child than to an adult.
• Inability to follow the rules of a conversation and storytelling, such as giving in or taking turns in a conversation and knowing how to use verbal and non-verbal cues to regulate interaction with other people.
• Difficulty understanding the implicit messages and the non-literal or ambiguous meaning of language, for example humor, metaphors or multiple meanings that are interpreted according to the context.
• Deficits can result in functional limitations in effective communication, social participation, social relationships, academic performance, or occupational performance.

Symptoms of this disorder are in an early developmental period and are not usually due to a general medical or neurological condition, or lack of skills in the domains of word structuring and grammar.