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How To Be Digitally Civil In Today’s World

It’s no secret we live in a constantly changing digital world filled with news information, social media personalities and various digital friends – all trying to comment, promote or spread ideas on the internet. However, things can sometimes get complicated.

Digitally Civil

Imagine a neighborhood, for example, with different homes and businesses all working cohesively. While things may be fine most of the time, the neighborhood flourishes best when people remain civil – considering respect, autonomy and most importantly, a deep appreciation for big and small ideas. That’s what digital civility is like, too. Digital citizenship is the ability to navigate our digital environments in a safe, responsible way while actively and respectfully engaging in these spaces. Whether it’s understanding how to responsibly use a social networking site, preventing cyberbullying, communicating and collaborating online or creating digital relationships via tools like email and chat rooms, being an active and ethical digital citizen is vitally important. But why? 

For starters, our world is no longer merely physical where you are forced to go to the store, restaurant, work or even school. These days, you can shop online and take your meetings via Zoom all from the comfort of your own home, making part of your world digitized. Still, though, that doesn’t excuse you from knowing how to interact with others on a digital platform. Although we live and interact in the digital world that is similar to the offline world, it’s easy to separate ourselves from the reality of how our actions affect our reputation, safety and growth. 

That’s why it’s crucial to learn and practice simple ways to exercise proper digital citizenship, especially during peak times of confusion and uncertainty. Whether you’re discussing politics or the latest game, maintaining a solid grasp of what good digital citizenship looks like can prepare you to teach and lead others into a more holistic understanding of what it means to be an ethical, civil and self-controlled individual within digital spaces.

Interested in learning more? Check out these simple things to keep in mind. 

Remain Mindful and Respectful Online

Respect can sometimes be hard to practice without taking empathy and ethics into account. Empathy is developing a sense of right and wrong that goes past just being afraid of punishment and instead, pushes you to put yourself in another person’s shoes. Changing your perspective from yours to someone else’s allows you to imagine what another person might be thinking or feeling. Psychologists call this ‘perspective talking.’ According to the study, when you start trying to understand another person’s intentions online, you might find yourself learning something new.  

According to Canada’s Centre for Digital Media Literacy, respect and empathy seem to be the first thing to go when people face opposition online. Perhaps it’s someone sharing information that doesn’t sit well with you, or someone who posted a bad review on the latest blockbuster film (which you loved). The fact of the matter is, it’s easy to get a bit defensive when things aren’t the way we want them to be. In an online setting, it’s common for us to strongly react to content with little to no regard for how it affects the person on the other side. That’s why it’s so important to remain mindful of your actions online, and always show respect. Next time you find yourself facing a hot-button issue online, try some of these mental reminders: 

  • People we talk to online are real people. Even if you don’t know them personally, try to imagine a person sitting next to you before you say or type anything. 
  • Try your best to not respond right away and think first. By taking some time to let the initial rush of anger or fear fade away, you might have a clearer idea of what actually made you upset and answer in a respectful way. 
  • Try using active listening and framing when you say your opinion. By starting off with “It sounds like you’re saying…” or “What I’m hearing from you is…” and “What I feel is…”, you can clear up any misunderstandings before expressing your viewpoint. 
  • If you can talk things out in person, try it out first rather than online. By taking the protection of a screen away, you might be able to tell someone what you’re really feeling and get to hear another perspective before any drama or anxiety starts to build up. 

Fight Against Misinformation and Hate Speech

Today, you can find misinformation, fake news and hate speech in any – and every – corner of the internet, especially on social media platforms. According to Forbes magazine, hateful speech has vexed social networks for years causing companies like Facebook and Twitter to enforce policies against hateful speech and offensive content. However, the spread of these types of posts has yet to be eliminated. In fact, as a society, we are still wrestling with these ideas. In fact, a recent survey found that 52% of respondents agree that social media platforms should restrict hateful and inaccurate content, with 38% arguing that sites should remain as open forums. 

The question, nowadays, is what should you do and how should you do it. And while commentaries and agencies agree that speech should not be limited, hate speech and misinformation can oftentimes rile and distort more issues than help. That’s why it’s a good practice to follow the ‘see something, say something’ reporting rule. Perhaps your feed showed you some obscene content that made you cringe, or you noticed some form of cyberbullying occurring online. In those cases, it’s important for you to use your digital civility skills for good and report it to the platform, if it happens to be hurting someone more than helping.  

This can be tricky, we will admit. However, it can help platforms and their members keep content and opinions free from antagonizing people. Next time you find yourself wondering whether you should report something online, try these simple steps: 

  1. Read before sharing online – Social media is designed to make you share, like or report things right away. However, it’s better to wait a few minutes to think about it first. Take a second to read the post and see if it fits with the community standards set by the platform. 
  2. Evaluate the source and check their facts – Trusted sources are typically organizations, people and agencies that have a good track record for getting the facts right despite whether or not you agree with them. Not sure if they’re accurate? Take some time to investigate. If the information is fake or falsified, report it. Your community will thank you for it. 
  3. See Something, Say Something – If you notice something out of the ordinary or illegal, make sure to report it. By allowing certain content to progress, you might be feeding into the lack of digital civility we see today. 

Encourage Others To Live By The Golden Rule

As Christians, we are told to love our neighbors as ourselves (Mark 12:30-31). Reframed as the infamous golden rule, this verse has inspired students, employees and common joes that treating others the way you want to be treated, is the best way to keep civility at the forefront of our chaotic society. As such, part of our digital citizenship should be to encourage others to be respectful, honest and merciful even during times of panic or division. This can look like commenting on someone’s post about God’s faithfulness and forgiving nature, or giving someone the benefit of the doubt when they upload an article that you don’t agree with. Whatever the case may be, living by the golden rule is essential. After all, part of being a responsible digital citizen is being respectful of online friendships, just as you would with face-to-face interactions. If you wouldn’t feel comfortable saying it to someone’s face, you probably shouldn’t type it. So, before you (or someone you know) share information – a picture, a video, a post, or a tweet – ask yourself, “Would I want someone sharing that information about me?” Chances are, the answer is no. 

Being a digital citizen has now become a part of life. At ACU Online, we know you’re encountering all sorts of people, information and content in a digital environment. As such, we want you to not only lead as a professional but also lead in our digital spaces. We believe our students are advanced practitioners of the digital world and we are excited to see how our university can assist in bridging the gap between our divided society and digital culture. 

Would you like to be a part of ACU Online’s growing family of students? Apply today and get started. 

 
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