Social Interaction of Indonesian Rural Youths in the Internet Age

Abstract

The internet penetration on young villagers gives rise to question about its effects on the social interaction and behavior patterns as it accelerates the interaction with the wider network. However, the internet could possibly decrease both the social interaction with local people at the village and the dependency toward native villagers as internet utilization allows the users to be more selective in terms of interactions according to their interests. This research aims to examine the impacts of the Internet through a dystopian view by comparing the degrees of senses of place, participation in local activities, and social capital among internet and non-internet users using a statistical approach. The analysis of variance and linear regression were employed in the present study. The results revealed that the internet did strengthen both broad and local social capital. It also supported young villager's participation in local activities. Nevertheless, the internet was observed to decline the villager's sense of place, especially the desire to remain a resident in the native village. Better access to information and network gained by the users elevated their chances to move outside the village when better opportunities were observed elsewhere.Sustainability 2020, 12, 115 2 of 26 face-to-face and traditional communication by which deep relationship could be considerably formed. This action strengthened social capital (SC) within local community [5] and reinforced one's attachment and dependency on the local community and living place. Later, the involvement of a resident on the internet afterwards allows him to be more selective in accordingly interacting with his interests [6]. It can accelerate, and shorten the time of, one's interaction with the network beyond space [7]. But, in the dystopian view, it possibly decreases the intensity of interaction with local people as a person needs time and effort as well to manage the other acquaintances [6].Besides transformed social interaction, the immediate impact felt by internet users is the easy access to information. Abundant information can support young villagers in making decisions in daily matters [8][9][10]. The internet, with its various derivative applications, also modifies rural youth's ways to do activities such as shopping, playing games, reading, and watching videos by simply going online. Things brought about by the internet in some cases are the answers to the needs of villagers (e.g. Stern et al. [11]). For instance, the information on job vacancies or skill training can easily reach rural youths' gadgets. However, sources of prospective self-improvement carriers are generally outside the native village.The new style of rural social life, however, could bring both negative and positive impacts. The internet inevitably improves people's networks, understanding of the outside world, lifestyle, and other personal aspects [7]. Since the rural areas mostly have limited facilities to meet a higher lifestyle, there would be a tendency in the people to feel mor...

Dampak Belanja Desa dan Modal Sosial terhadap Industri Perdesaan

“…Mereka melihat generasi yang lebih muda lebih individualis dan sibuk mencari uang (Winardi, 2020). Namun demikian, anggapan tersebut tidak sejalan dengan studi Priatama et al (2020) yang meneliti dampak penggunaan internet terhadap interaksi sosial kaum muda. Mereka menemukan bahwa penggunaan internet meningkatkan modal sosial melalui perluasan jejaring dan penguatan hubungan lokal.…”

The Effect of Internet Usage on Social Capital in Indonesia

“…But on the other hand, the internet also plays a role in helping users to connect with distant relatives, old friends, and make new friends. In the Indonesian context, research related to the influence of the internet on social capital was conducted by Priatama et al (2020). They conducted research related to social interactions among Indonesian youth, particularly in remote areas in 330 villages in Probolinggo regency of East Java province.…”

“…Model I. It only includes the use of the internet as the main independent variable: Based on previous research on the effect of the internet on social capital that has been carried out by Siraj (2018) and Priatama et al (2020), this study intends to find out more about the extent to which the internet influences social capital in Indonesian society based on the level of education (low, middle and high education) and region (urban/rural). Thus, three research hypotheses are proposed as follows: a.…”

“…On the one hand, the internet brings people who are far in distance closer, but on the other hand, it is often considered setting apart people who are physically near. In the Indonesian context, research related to the influence of the internet on social capital was conducted by Priatama et al (2020). They did research related to social interactions among Indonesian youth, especially in remote areas in Probolinggo regency, East Java province.…”

“…The study also found that the internet had reduced the sense of ownership of their village, especially demonstrated by the lack of villagers' willingness to remain a native villager. However, Priatama et al (2020) did not describe the overall condition of Indonesian society in terms of the influence of the internet on social capital, but only highlights explicitly the social interaction of youth in rural areas. Therefore this study attempts to see the extent to which the internet affects social capital in Indonesian society as a whole, not only in rural areas but also urban areas, both the young and the elderly population, and based on the levels of education, regional characteristics, interaction between internet use and education, and the interaction between internet use and regional characteristics (urban/rural).…”