Hello Menewsha!
So, I currently have an English essay/speech to write in which I need to answer some of the moral and ethical issues surrounding social media and the internet. The specific question that I am answering is 'Does fulfillment online have the same meaning it does in the "Real World"', and as someone who has a fairly solid presence online I was thinking that I might present a survey to the people of Menewsha so I can get a general feel of what other people think about this topic. For the purposes of this survey I am assuming that you have been on the internet for a while, and have at least a few online friends. This thread will also be cited in my bibliography. :)

I would really love it if you could answer the following questions for me, and feel free to expand as much as you want. The longer your answer the better, I say. :)

[QUOTE]Do you think fulfillment online has the same meaning as it does in the real world?[/QUOTE]

[QUOTE]Would you put your online friends on the same level as your real world friends?[/QUOTE]

[QUOTE]When you need comfort or to vent on an issue, will you usually go to your online or real world friends first? Feel free to expand.[/QUOTE]

[QUOTE]Are you more open with online friends or with real world friends?[/QUOTE]

[QUOTE]Have you ever met up with an online friend? How did that compare to speaking with them online?[/QUOTE]

[QUOTE]Do you think the internet has had an effect on your real world relations? If so, how?[/QUOTE]

[QUOTE]Do you have Facebook? Do you use it frequently?[/QUOTE]

[QUOTE]Any final statements?[/QUOTE]

I hope this is in the right place.

Do you think fulfillment online has the same meaning as it does in the real world?

There are several different types of fulfillment: intellectual fulfillment, sexual fulfillment, social fulfillment, etc and they are satisfied to different degrees both online and IRL. However, the meaning of fulfillment does not change simply because you've changed the medium or the distance involved, all that changes is the level to which you fulfill these needs/desires/what have you.

Would you put your online friends on the same level as your real world friends?

Some of them, yes. others, no. I determine friendship by the amount of interaction with, enjoyment of, and trust in a person be they someone I've met online or someone I've met in real life. While there is much to be said for sharing a burger, or whatever else might be said to your particular taste, just as much can often be said for roleplaying. In many ways, we are able to be more open with our online friends at the beginning, we are more ourselves because that initial bit of anonymity. Even so, I have found that the two are about even, friends are friends, and they vary in closeness regardless of how you interact with then. The important part is that that interaction is there in whatever form.

When you need comfort or to vent on an issue, will you usually go to your online or real world friends first? Feel free to expand.

I'll go to whoever happens to be around first. Admittedly, it's much easier to pop online and vent. A computer is often near at hand, whereas 'real world' friends must first be tracked down. I suppose you could say it's a matter of proximity. If I'm out and about with a friend, they might get to hear about a problem first. If I'm alone in my room and need to get something off my chest, my online friends get the first crack at it.

Are you more open with online friends or with real world friends?

Yes, but as I become more confident in myself, I'm starting to even that out a bit. The relative anonymity of the net allows us certain freedoms, gives us a certain bit of extra courage that allows us to be our true selves to some degree, or so I have found.

Have you ever met up with an online friend? How did that compare to speaking with them online?

Absolutely. I was originally part of Mystery Missions and met up with a number of my team mates at Six Flags. We had a blast and they were every bit as sweet and interesting IRL as they were online. I have been meeting online folks off and on ever since.

Do you think the internet has had an effect on your real world relations? If so, how?

A friend of mine talks in tumblr-ese, does that count? No?...pity. Seriously though, the people that we are on the net are often the people that we wish to be, they're as open and honest as we'd like to be IRL, but can't quite bring ourselves to be and, if we look carefully, it allows us to see what we want out of life, friends, etc, even if it doesn't necessarily help us achieve those things IRL.

Do you have Facebook? Do you use it frequently?

I do, indeed. Yes, I use it fairly often to keep in contact with people who have moved away, writing buddies, old classmates, and to gather nearby friends on occasion.

Any final statements?

If you need to me to rephrase or add anything to these answers (I often miss points entirely at this time of night), do let me know.

Sure thing. Happy to help a Menewshan ^^

Do you think fulfillment online has the same meaning as it does in the real world?

I think in a way yes, but online it's easier.

Would you put your online friends on the same level as your real world friends?

Yes, because they are one and the same :) any good friends online I will treat as if I've known them for years irl

When you need comfort or to vent on an issue, will you usually go to your online or real world friends first? Feel free to expand.

Online. Partially anonymous and a place like Menewsha allows me to know that I can safely not get "Go kill yourself" or "Get over it" as a response...

Are you more open with online friends or with real world friends?

Open to both. Due to my strict requirements of a friend they are no different.

Have you ever met up with an online friend? How did that compare to speaking with them online?

I did 3 times. My exwife (long story), a friend of mine I've lost contact with, and my current partner who I am very happy with. Each time meeting them was very exciting but very nerve wracking, but also felt no different.

Do you think the internet has had an effect on your real world relations? If so, how?

Very much. I was able to slowly become more social.

Do you have Facebook? Do you use it frequently?

I avoid facebook like the plague ^^"

Any final statements?

My answers will probably be rather different from the norm ^^"

Do you think fulfillment online has the same meaning as it does in the real world?

Yes and no. Fulfilment does mean the same both online and offline, just for me it feels slightly different depending on whether I've done something IRL or online.

Would you put your online friends on the same level as your real world friends?

Absolutely! They're real people at the end of the day, just because they're not in the same place as me doesn't make them any less of a friend to me.

When you need comfort or to vent on an issue, will you usually go to your online or real world friends first? Feel free to expand.

I tend to go online first. It's easier to vent online for me, I don't like dumping my problems onto other people much.

Are you more open with online friends or with real world friends?

I'm open with both, but I tend to trust online friends a lot faster than I do real world friends.

Have you ever met up with an online friend? How did that compare to speaking with them online?

I have, yes. It's amazing. We really hit it off, conversation flowed just as it did when we were online but it was better because we actually got to see each other's reactions.

Do you think the internet has had an effect on your real world relations? If so, how?

Sort of. Habits that you pick up online through socialisation will always bleed through into your real world socialisation

Do you have Facebook? Do you use it frequently?

I do have Facebook and I go on it daily, but I hardly ever update.

Any final statements?

Not really, no

Do you think fulfillment online has the same meaning as it does in the real world?

Yes, I think if it weren't for the internet, I wouldn't have gotten into all the interests i have now, and I would probably be a lot sadder without it o:

Would you put your online friends on the same level as your real world friends?

Most definitely, sometimes they're even better than my offline friends, they're pretty much always there and our conversations are endless.

When you need comfort or to vent on an issue, will you usually go to your online or real world friends first? Feel free to expand.

Are you more open with online friends or with real world friends?

(answers for both questions are pretty much identical)

Online friends. I trust them more, I'm not saying I don't trust my offline friends, but at least with online people it's less likely that I'm going to be judged like crazy (I dont know why it works like that) but also, I'm a lot braver online, I can say things and people wont know that I'm about to burst into tears (which I hate doing in front of people) and on those days where i just cant get out of bed, then my online friends are just on the other side of the screen, I dont have to bother phoning people up and possibly disrupting their day because I want to talk to them at some place :B

Have you ever met up with an online friend? How did that compare to speaking with them online?

Yes, many times. C: I always think it's going to be super awkward, but after a few minutes I get over it and we end up having the best time, and its like we've known each other IRL for years!

Do you think the internet has had an effect on your real world relations? If so, how?

Nope.

Do you have Facebook? Do you use it frequently?

I have it, but I don't use it, except for messaging, really. :/

Any final statements?

Do you think fulfillment online has the same meaning as it does in the real world?

Yes, if I were not interested into the internet at a younger age then I would have never really found myself or the hobbies that I like to do, ex: drawing, reading, looking at fashion, graphic design. I wouldn't have met my first friends (since I was an outcast at school when I was younger and I thought about suicide, but my internet friends saved me from that.) The internet is a place to turn to when you have nowhere else to turn and it can be a last resort for help also. It also let's people let their guard down and to just be relaxed and to be themselves with the since of anonymity.

Would you put your online friends on the same level as your real world friends?

Yes, every friend of mine is important, whether they are a real life friend or an internet friend.

When you need comfort or to vent on an issue, will you usually go to your online or real world friends first? Feel free to expand.

I usually go to the internet and vent to my internet friends because they are not afraid to be themselves and there is also that since of anonymity and you feel more relaxed of what to tell them. You also feel secure telling them, because you know that they can't go around spreading your business to your IRL friends.

Are you more open with online friends or with real world friends?

Online friends.

Have you ever met up with an online friend? How did that compare to speaking with them online?

I've never met an online friend, but I did meet someone off of a dating site and it failed horribly, the communication was horrible and they were not the same person as they said they were online. :/

Do you think the internet has had an effect on your real world relations? If so, how?

Yes, it has had an effect on my RL. I've become more confident with myself and my abilities. I learned to be less judgmental and to accept a variety of people and how they see the world. I've learned that friendship is very important and it's what keeps me going. I also have tapped into creative areas of my ability and learned to graphic design and draw anime/manga/and characters.

Do you have Facebook? Do you use it frequently?

I honestly just deactivated my Facebook because I was sick of seeing all the drama on there and I don't like people knowing my every move in my life.

Any final statements?

I hope that you found all of this helpful. :)

Do you think fulfillment online has the same meaning as it does in the real world?

I think this depends on who you're talking to. For some, like me, the internet is a extension of the "real world." Online and "real world" experiences are are different, but I don't think one is less fulfilling than the other.

Would you put your online friends on the same level as your real world friends?

I consider my online friends as real world friends. Whether I'm talking to me neighbor or a online friend a continent away they're both equally real and important to me. I consider all my friendships equal.

When you need comfort or to vent on an issue, will you usually go to your online or real world friends first? Feel free to expand.

I go to whoever can sympathize or relate with best. Sometimes that's a online friend, sometimes it isn't.

Are you more open with online friends or with real world friends?

I think it really depends. I think I open up with my online friends faster than my real world friends. However, after knowing someone for a few years online or off I think you become pretty transparent.

Have you ever met up with an online friend? How did that compare to speaking with them online?

I have met two online friends in person. The first flew down from Ohio to Texas and stayed for a week. When we met at the airport it was felt as if we were old friends who hadn't seen one another a long time. Much less two people meeting in person for the first time. Our friendship didn't change. He was still the same person I met online several years before. Getting to spend time with him in person was a very rewarding.

The second friend lives only forty minutes away and over the last year we've been meeting every month or two. Unlike my other friend we had been talking for only a few months and not a few years. After a few years of talking to someone online their entire personality is very well fleshed out. It's hard not to know the real them. With this second friend I didn't know him as well and I was somewhat apprehensive. Was he going to act like the same person I met online? Luckily the answer was yes, and he's become a good friend.

Do you think the internet has had an effect on your real world relations? If so, how?

The internet has changed how and where I choose to socialize with other people and how I build meaningful friendships. Foremost I'm a rather introverted individual. I'd rather pursue my hobbies than go to the bar or the club. I think the internet has helped me find friends that I have a lot in common with. I'm sure there's plenty of people out there with similar interests but I don't think we're the type of people who brave the world to look for similarly minded people.

Do you have Facebook? Do you use it frequently?

I have a Facebook but I don't use it for anything other than the Project 240sx classifieds.

Any final statements?

Do you think fulfillment online has the same meaning as it does in the real world?

I would say yes. I think fulfillment, in basically any sense of the word, can be achieved both online and offline, although the means through which it is achieved might differ.

Would you put your online friends on the same level as your real world friends?

My closest friends are people I know in real life, but that doesn't mean that they are on a different level than people I know online. I don't place a different value on a friendship based on how I know the person. I mostly value my friendships based on the conversations I have with my friends. In general, the more we share, and the deeper we go into our philosophies and our personal problems, the closer we become.

Again, the methods for reaching that point with people online vs. offline are often different. In real life, I feel there is more room for superficiality. You don't have as much freedom to be yourself and speak your mind in person because those interactions have much larger potential to impact your other relationships and, by extension, your whole offline life. A similar effect can occur in online communities, but since it's anonymous, if I make a bad impression on this account today, I can create another and start over tomorrow. You can't do that in real life.

So online relationships tend to develop backwards (at least for me). People get to know your innermost thoughts and desires first, and if they share many of them, you will talk more and start to learn the more superficial stuff about each other. But either way, a person has the same potential to become a close friend under my definition of a friendship.

When you need comfort or to vent on an issue, will you usually go to your online or real world friends first? Feel free to expand.

It depends. I have a couple of deep, dark secrets that I'm not comfortable sharing with certain people in the real world. It's for the same reason as I mentioned above. People talk, and my offline life would be negatively impacted if certain people knew certain things, so I tend to avoid talking about those things in real life and instead vent about them to strangers online.

Are you more open with online friends or with real world friends?

I am a pretty open person in general. But like I've said, there are certain things I am more comfortable sharing with strangers online than with people who could potentially tell people I am trying to hide them from. However, there is nothing I am comfortable sharing in real life but not online, so I have to say I am more open online.

Have you ever met up with an online friend? How did that compare to speaking with them online?

There was somebody who I technically knew through a friend, but had only talked to online, if that counts. We started dating (kind of), and conspired to go to the same band camp the following year. It felt so nice to be physically together, but that's a lot more important when you're dating someone than when you're just friends. If we had been just friends, it might not have made a difference.

Do you think the internet has had an effect on your real world relations? If so, how?

The internet has an effect on everything these days, but I don't think my real world friendships are drastically better or worse off because of the internet.

Do you have Facebook? Do you use it frequently?

Yes, but I only use it as a means of communication for when I can't talk in person.

Do you think fulfillment online has the same meaning as it does in the real world?

I think we get a lot of out of it, in its own way. There are certain barriers that are diminished through the online format.
The same chemicals responsible for pleasure are pumped out - chemicals don't descriminate. But we frame and define "meaning" by more than just chemicals. I would say we probably still crave human contact on some level, which makes me feel that as far as enrichment, no, probably not as far as fulfillment. Still, it provides important social connections. It does provide us with many ways to expand our lives and ourselves.

Would you put your online friends on the same level as your real world friends?

I think this varies depending on the people and the closeness. Real life friends can be far and few between, and the level of connection can be scant. I know I've opened up to the Online ones more readily than the physical ones, as things seem to flow more readily in various directions online. You can be exposed to more things with Physical friends, though. It's a tough question. At the moment, I would say yes, I more of a connection with the Online. However, I say that with the knowledge that the Physical could and would likely supplant them if I actually was more involved with that aspect of things.

When you need comfort or to vent on an issue, will you usually go to your online or real world friends first? Feel free to expand.

Oh, online, definitely. Things meander, and can be left or touched on more readily in that kind of environment. It's more low risk, less loaded it feels.

Are you more open with online friends or with real world friends?

Online, unquestionably. Even with things like time zones getting in the way - just being online, I feel connected to them, they have a "presence" there at all times. Connection makes all the difference for me.

Have you ever met up with an online friend? How did that compare to speaking with them online?

I haven't, not yet. I have no qualms with the idea. I think depending on the person, it could be a very rewarding and enriching experience. My one concern, as far as speaking, would be that things might not flow as they do online. Not that I mind awkward silences. They can be rewarding in their own way But again, I think it depends on the person. And you don't have to have sweeping conversations (though admittedly, that's one of my main forms of communication online). Banter is some of the most rewarding conversation a person can have.

Do you think the internet has had an effect on your real world relations? If so, how?

I do think it has made me able to connect with people more readily, to tackle a conversation as it comes and take jocular risks.

Do you have Facebook? Do you use it frequently?

Nope. It's never appealed to me in the slightest.

Any final statements?

Did I go off on too many tangents and flights of fancy?

Do you think fulfillment online has the same meaning as it does in the real world?

not at all. online is merely only a temporary filler or fix for what we human's really need or crave. it's easier than having to get up, shower and go out somewhere to be social in real life. the feelings we get may be the same but like i said... only temporary.

Would you put your online friends on the same level as your real world friends?

being online friends is sort of like an introduction or just the start to being real friends. i would definitely say that i do have friends who are strictly online but how often we talk and what we talk about determines the 'level. i've also met online friends in real life and i can now say i am still friends with them, although, it is best to be selective and safe when it comes to such things

When you need comfort or to vent on an issue, will you usually go to your online or real world friends first? Feel free to expand.

totally depends on if there is anyone in real life that is available for such venting. typically, i get it all out with a real life friend via a phone call, but to sort of help squash lingering feelings or put out the fire completely, venting online a little bit to the people who are my online friends is definitely helpful too.

Are you more open with online friends or with real world friends?

depends on the friend i suppose. there is only a small handful of people in real life whom i can be totally honest with and say whatever i have to or want to and they understand it, but i feel like i am a burden to them sometimes. so it is much easier to talk to an online friend about lots of different things because they don't really see you at all and can respond when they feel like it. it's easier to hide behind the computer screen and say what you mean and when you have verbal diarrhea in real life (like i do) it makes communicating clearer. although, most times the social queues are missed and certain nuances, sarcasm and humor can be lost.

Have you ever met up with an online friend? How did that compare to speaking with them online?

i have! several times and it was lots of fun one was actually a lot like myself and a little more quiet at first but once we both got comfortable it was like we had known each other for years. i've been really lucky when it comes to meeting online friends.

Do you think the internet has had an effect on your real world relations? If so, how?

oh of course. i often wonder why i can't meet awesome people like i've met online out in the real world, but like me, they are all inside on a computer i feel like maybe i've raised my standards in the people i want to associate with in real life because of the experiences i've had online.

Do you have Facebook? Do you use it frequently?

i do and i do. i use it very often. i am generally on menewsha, facebook and twitter (just to see what my favorite hockey players are up to primarily) off and on the times i am home. i'm glad i have a craptastic phone otherwise i'd be online all the other hours i'm not home too and never get any work done. now that i think about it, i don't really do much on facebook, and i don't generally add people i associate with online, unless i am pretty confident in who they are and we talk a lot. those people are few and far between.

Any final statements?

i hope you get a great grade on your assignment!

Thank you for replying, everyone who did. I've now finished writing up my speech and seeing what everyone has had to say has really helped me figure out what I'm wanting to get across. I hope you all have a lovely week.

Reading what a lot of you had to say was quite interesting, by the way, and it was good seeing such a diverse range of responses.

i doubt my response, being right near the end of your assignment it seems, was much help but i'm interested in your topic

Great topic for a speech!
I'm late, but I wanna share anyway.

Do you think fulfillment online has the same meaning as it does in the real world?

I would think so. A person feels fulfilled when they're fulfilled and those things don't specify or care how or where or when the fulfillment happened.

Would you put your online friends on the same level as your real world friends?

Of course. Some of my best friends are online and I mainly talk to my originally real life friends via the internet.

When you need comfort or to vent on an issue, will you usually go to your online or real world friends first? Feel free to expand.

I don't have the option to go to real world friends because none are in my area. I do go first to my real world best friend first, but I get in contact with her online. If she's not around, I'll talk to whatever online friend happens to be on, but a real online friend, not just anyone I've happened to talk to.

Are you more open with online friends or with real world friends?

About equal? But I do find it easier to be open online.

Have you ever met up with an online friend? How did that compare to speaking with them online?

I really wish I had met up with someone. It's on my plans. My real world friends sound the same to me online though. The closest I've gotten to meeting with an online friend is pen-paling through mail and sending presents.

Do you think the internet has had an effect on your real world relations? If so, how?

I actually wrote a creative essay about that, slightly. I find the information and references that I use for my art and writing projects via the internet and I'm able to research quickly. And of course, my online friends tell me "hey, write your essay about us"

Do you have Facebook? Do you use it frequently?

I have facebook. I almost never use it. Maybe I log on every 3 months or so, but it's just to look at one picture or something and never respond or post anything of my own.

Any final statements?

The internet is great, but I think it would be best if I could meet some of my online friends because certain obsessions like with kpop, I wish I could physically vent. But I can't find any real world friends with that interest.

Do you think fulfillment online has the same meaning as it does in the real world?

Yes, although it depends on the person and their definition of fulfillment or accomplishment. One may find it harder to accept accomplishment than another - say you finished a ten page essay. One person may feel like it was a great accomplishment, and feel relieved when their done; as where another person would see this as just another simple assignment that had to be done, and they really accomplished nothing for themselves. Personally, I find fulfillment online just as rewarding as that offline. You can get things done, and do as you please - there are probably many easier ways to accomplish things online than in the real world where there are constant obstacles, but overcoming those larger obstacles may be where people find the greater satisfaction of accomplishing something. So although I find that online and offline accomplishments are both of the same meaning, I do not feel they have the same value - or rather, I feel their worth can vary.

Would you put your online friends on the same level as your real world friends?

I would respect my online friends as much as I would my real world friends, but I would have a stronger relationship with my real world friends, and value the bonds that we have established over the years more so, than I would the relationship of my online friends of whom I have usually just known for a few months.

When you need comfort or to vent on an issue, will you usually go to your online or real world friends first? Feel free to expand.

I go to my real world friends. It's easier to communicate and convey your emotions and feelings when your talking to someone personally (normally).

Are you more open with online friends or with real world friends?

I'm more open with online friends when it comes to certain things. Everyone has secrets or personal interests that they prefer not to share with their real world friends. It's much easier to tarnish your reputation with people offline than those you don't see online. Sometimes it's difficult to handle the speculatory gazes or mocking words of your offline friends, even if they're joking. Sometimes people don't know when to respect your personal interests, and its much easier to find a group you can relate to online.

Have you ever met up with an online friend? How did that compare to speaking with them online?

No, I have not met up with any of my online friends.

Do you think the internet has had an effect on your real world relations? If so, how?

No, I keep them separate.

Do you have Facebook? Do you use it frequently?

Yes, but I only go on once a month if not less.

Any final statements?

No, not that I can think of at the moment, sorry.