Cyberculture

The advent of the personal computer combined with the development of the Internet and easy-to-use, Internet-based computer applications has created a new virtual environment in which new forms of social interaction occur. Adding new technologies to social behaviors has created an environment that has changed individuals, cultures, and the world. Due to [Page 655]the dynamic nature of the Internet, individuals can communicate with others who have the same interests worldwide. A new world culture has formed. The overlying culture is different from previous cultural development in nature and scope. The development is of a virtual nature and (or will) encompasses every individual worldwide. Never before have new global cultural forms emerged so quickly.

Culture is defined in several ways: (a) the totality of socially transmitted behavior patterns, arts, beliefs, institutions, and all other products of human work and thought; (b) the patterns, traits, and products considered as the expression of a particular period, class, community, or population; and (c) the predominating attitudes and behavior that characterize the functioning of a group or organization. Cyber refers to computers. Cyberculture can then be defined as the transforming of social behavioral patterns, arts, beliefs, institutions, and all other products of human work and thought in which humans interact with computers and computer networks.

Culture plays a role in society and societal issues. Barnouw stated that society is a more or less organized group of people of both sexes who share a common culture. Loosely “society,” in this context, refers to issues such as meeting food, shelter, reproductive, and other basic needs. Das stated that a society typically has only one culture. Ember and Ember, and Nanda stated that two different societies cannot possess the same culture. Das again stated that this implied that if cyberculture is a distinct culture, then it should form one particular separate society. Cyberculture is unique in that it is essentially one distinct and separate subculture of many global societies. This societal cultural extension is the same globally but is connected to societies with different values, ethics, and morals. For instance, Europe, America, and Asia all have different societies, with each having its own unique culture. The culture of cyber, transported through the Internet, is identical regardless of physical location. Beliefs, behaviors, patterns, traits, and predominating attitudes are nearly identical whether the individual is in New York, London, Hong Kong, Moscow, or Munich. Cyberculture is then intertwined with the local culture and society, extending the physical world into the virtual world. North has called cyberculture a “pan-societal superstructure.” Cyberculture, unlike traditional cultures, is freed of the responsibilities of providing a number of properties that can reasonably be expected from any mainstream society by virtue of the fact that its members are also members of the traditional mainstream societies that supply basic societal needs (food, shelter). According to Das, the Internet society has become a melting pot of different societal components, such as economics, socialization, politics, and entertainment.

The Internet and cyberculture have brought about a shift in values from those accepted in traditional societies. Although multimedia components such as audio, pictures, and video are becoming a more important (and more abundant) component of the Internet for the personal user, its first decade in existence was primarily based on simple text as a form of communication between the majority of users. When this form of communication is used, it removes the traditional way societies judge one another and places a new value on one's worth. Traditionally, societies judge people by appearance, gender, race, wealth, dress, occupation, and so on. In the Internet culture, individuals are judged on their contributions to the new culture. For instance, prestige is earned by what an individual writes or by performing some other service such as maintaining discussion groups or websites.

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