Preliminary communication
https://doi.org/10.5673/sip.62.1.7
When Worlds Collide: Sociality Between Physical and Cyberspace during the COVID-19 Pandemic
Rok Smrdelj
orcid.org/0000-0003-2259-2775
; University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Arts, Slovenia
Blaž Lenarčič
; Science and Research Centre Koper, Institute for Social Studies, Slovenia
Abstract
Many studies have already demonstrated that ICT use does not necessarily lead
to more loneliness and social isolation among people. Nevertheless, the assumption that ICT
contributes to the feelings of loneliness and associated illnesses persists among some researchers
and in everyday discourse. The paper explores the sociological understanding of sociality
from the perspective of ICT use during the COVID-19 pandemic in Slovenia. The results of
an online survey conducted in the autumn of 2020, with a random sample of 454 participants,
indicated that despite the government-imposed restrictions on gatherings and physical interactions
of individuals, social dynamics were maintained, albeit predominantly through ICT.
Moreover, most respondents reported not experiencing greater loneliness during this period,
probably owing to the preservation of their social contacts in cyberspace. It was also observed
that the respondents engaged in different activities aimed at sustaining social interaction in
cyberspace (i.e., telephone conversations, social media engagement, video calls), contributing
to a reduced sense of isolation. The main objective of this paper is to reflect on contemporary
social trends, positing that proximity in physical space is no longer a precondition for the
emergence and maintenance of social dynamics between individuals.
Keywords
ICT; sociality; loneliness; COVID-19 pandemic; physical space; cyberspace; spatial sociology; Slovenia
Hrčak ID:
318651
URI
Publication date:
1.7.2024.
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