INFORMATION OVERLOADED

   

According to certain studies conducted, when people are overwhelmed by too much information it leads to certain adverse effects. During COVID-19, a survey was conducted in Seoul, South Korea among 627 residents. The study showed that the cognitive capacity and the frequency of online news use and interpersonal communication were significant predictors of information overload.

Data is everywhere. It is hidden in something as small as a human protein and as large as Earth’s atmosphere. Since the beginning of the internet, data has been growing exponentially. People are pumping out an unbelievable amount of data into the web everyday which is nearly 2.5 quintillion bytes.

Information Overloaded

Information Overloaded is a state when one is presented with too much information which causes difficulty to a person for taking decisions due to the presence of excess information or it is the kind of stress you feel when you consume more information than you can “digest”.

History

The term ‘information overloaded’ was coined by a professor of political science named Bertram Gross but it was popularised by an American writer Alvin Toffler. 

This concept was there around since 3rd or 4th century BCE. Throughout history there have been complaints about information overload particularly during the Renaissance and the industrial revolution periods.

Causes

Nowadays an enormous amount of irrelevant data is reaching among the people and make them confused. This is one of the main problems faced by the present society and so, the topic is more overlooked. Some main causes of information overload are:

• Lack of clarity in the information. As due to the large bombardment of the information the people find it difficult to reach at a final understanding as they got a lot of information but unable to understand but mere a random data.

• As there is a lot of sources to get information and each source have different meaning and it makes people confusing. Multiple sources of information are a cause of information overload.

• Sometimes the user cannot read the information within his time limit. It is due to the large amount of information.

• There are no methodologies for quickly processing, comparing and evaluating information sources.

Effects

People have started finding themselves becoming more stressed from the distraction, pressure and interruptions that have entered their lives because of the relentless flow of information.

Poor decision-making is one of the biggest impacts of information overload, which has reduced the mental capacity. Researches shows that information overload has made people to work below their potential and lost their focus on work. As a result, less productivity, think superficially and generate fewer ideas and cause errors. Due to the poor mental health, it takes time to keep all the information. This not only happens in work but also in personal life also and starts to affect health. Dealing with a lot of stress than before cause increase in anxiety levels, high rate of irritation and depression level and may lead to death sometimes.

Preventions

The information should be kept simple so that it will be easy to interpret. It should be presented in an innovative way so that the user can understand easily. Use the information effectively to accomplish a specific purpose. The provided information should be linked with similar ideas so that users can relate them.

Individuals can also avoid information overload by themselves.

• Ignore the extra information that they feel ignored or cannot consume.

• The information can be tackled by taking more time.

• Try to take key points from the bundle in information and work upon it rather be confused.

• Divide the work among others.

Information overload is a phenomenon which makes people confusing due to the bundle of data. In the coming generations this keeps on increasing. The prevention measures stated above can provide a relief for the users. The libraries, information professionals etc should come forward and provide certain measures for tackling the problem innovatively and effectively.

 By  Siddharth Krishnan

Content Writer

Social Journal

CHARITY FRAUD

 Giving money to others can give satisfaction to the donors. They may feel that many people are aided by their money and it is being spent for a good cause. On the other hand, there are many scams or frauds with the same. In such cases, one cannot claim that their money is reaching the right destination. For eg. In Hyderabad, a girl was scammed by a group of three people including a Nigerian on spiritual matters through social media and they took 6.52 lakhs for charity work in India, but were later caught by the police.

Charity Fraud

Charity fraud is an act of using fraudulent ways to ask people to donate money for charitable work, charitable trust, organizations, etc. Such people claim that they are part of an imaginary charitable trust asking people to donate to a non-existent charity. The money that is donated is generally used for other activities in favour of those people.

Signs of Charity scams

• Refusal to provide charity details: The people who commit such scams refuse to provide any relevant details such as any information about the organization, amount of money used, its headquarters, its tax-exempt number, etc.

• A pressurized ask: A lot of scammers make you donate through a pressurized asking so that they can claim the money more easily. But reputed organizations make you understand their trust and aims while also providing enough time to decide.

• Alternate payment methods: Providing money in cash, gift cards, or through any applications that they provide should be avoided as this will ensure that you won’t get that money back once paid.

• Registration on the accountable website: There are sites on which charity trusts can be registered to prove their accountability. As a genuine trust tries to protect its consumers by registering itself on the same, a fraudulent one would generally not be found registered on any such websites.

Types of Charity Fraud

Charity fraud can be divided into two types; internal and external

1. Internal:

These types of scams occur within organizations. The people working for the organization can fraudulently handle the money, steal it or perform any such related activities. The officials can abuse their power by manipulating the money and making false expenses. These kinds of activities lead to poor financial policies.

2. External:

Fraudulent activities that take place outside the organization can be included in external frauds. These include funding for false incidents and cyber-crimes such as sending emails, hacking, etc.

Steps to prevent Charity fraud

There are many ways in which people can prevent charity scams by themselves some of which are:

Donating to established, certified organizations which you trust the most or adore their work. Beware of scams where a fraud institution is introduced in the name of a reputed organization. At present charity, fraud is going on in the name of COVID. Money should be given only after proper research. Proper research about the organization is important before giving out your precious money. Every proper organization is registered under certain government-oriented corporations. Always try to donate through cheque or credit card as most scammers collect money in cash, gift card, etc. so as to prevent any proof. There can be requests for donations sent through mails or other platforms, avoid clicking on any links provided with such emails as they may lead to giving out your private information to the wrong hands.

 Conclusion

Charity monitoring organizations are there to eradicate the charity scams that are present in society. They provide information about these scams to the people and make them aware of the same.

A crucial role is played by charitable trusts in the social structure. Despite all these precautions the general public is mending to fall into such scams because of their generous nature and also the scammers trying to be more and more promising every day.

                                                                 By  Siddharth Krishnan

Content Writer

Social Journal

FOMO

 FOMO, or fear of missing out is relatively a new concept but is getting popular because of awareness among people and is not just a term that describes social anxiety. It actually is a constant fear, inside the mind of a person, of missing something which could bring some better opportunities or experiences in an individual's life. It is a very common phenomenon and can create problems like stress, anxiety and fear in the mind of an individual. This term was coined by a marketing strategist Dr. Dan Herman while relating to consumer behavior.

What is FOMO?

In this ever-growing era, where one can see what others are doing, creates a pressure on the mind of an individual to do the same thing and if it’s not done then, arises the fear of missing out. Fear of missing out is mainly the fear or anxiety of missing out on anything that brings betterment in life according to one’s own perspective. FOMO is mainly concentrated among the young population aged between 16-35. FOMO is very common nowadays and almost everyone of us must have gone through it at some point of time in life. People have become very competitive and they are ready to do anything to become the best. Everyone forgets that they can’t be on the same footing and get dissatisfied with their lives due to high expectations. Growth of FOMO is directly related to the increase in use of social media. It may have been heard - “Let’s do that, everyone is doing it”.  People do things as they see others doing it, not for the sake of doing it for themselves which shows us the growth of FOMO in general. High levels of FOMO are related to low levels of psychological satisfaction. FOMO is not much dependent on the age but, it actually is dependent on the usage of social media networks. Social media has created some standards for everything, even for happiness. There is so much peer pressure that, if someone gets out their real emotion, either they are asked to behave or they just become inspiration like what is wrong with us? Why can’t we just think for a second and behave rationally by normalizing these things and not creating hype about it.

What are the effects of FOMO?

It can bring psychological and behavioral changes in an individual which can range from stress, anxiety, depression and loneliness. It is normal human tendency to compare things and their own life with others which we think is healthy for our development and growth. Actually, it makes things worse for people as standards are set high on social media which basically highlights positive and good exposures on social media. In turn, if somebody fails to match those standards, FOMO starts paving its way. It may give rise to low self-esteem and unnecessary fatigue, headaches, stress, anxiety and procrastination. An individual can also feel a lack of social connections and try to boost up social connections even if they don’t feel like doing it. In this digital era, it gives rise to negative habits like increased screen time, being busy on the phone while being around other people, increased usage of drugs or alcohol and disturbed sleep cycles.

Ways to overcome fear of missing out

In this fast-moving life, we need to slow down and focus on our real life instead of life in front of cell phones and cameras. It is necessary to figure out our needs instead of focusing merely on our desires as they are endless. Just don’t get ready to do anything and start saying ‘NO’ to those things you don’t like or want to perform. Focus on a better experience and quality of that experience instead of focusing on quantity. It will provide you with more time for the activity which you actually love and admire. Start appreciating what you got instead of crying for what you don’t have. Activities like meditation and yoga will increase awareness about surroundings and feeling of calm. One thing which can be life changing is to accept ourselves as we are instead of changing for others or societal norms but, even in this process truthfulness to self is necessary. If all this is not helping you, one can also go and see a therapist, it is very normal and there is nothing wrong with you. If you are feeling the fear of missing out, please reach out to your loved ones and try focusing on the activities and suggestions.

Conclusively, it must be admitted that FOMO is growing more than ever and bringing harmful effects on the life and health of people. Self-awareness is important but we need campaigns to make people more aware about this concept and it may seem ordinary but the effects of it are extraordinary. 

By Gavish CHAUDHARY

Content Writer

Social Journal

Volunteering

Why and when do individuals add to the government assistance of others? For what reason do such countless individuals decide to help other people by giving their cash, time or labor supply and numerous others don’t? For such countless individuals chipping in may be a misuse of important time and for some others it very well may be the best experience ever… what makes the experience remarkable?

Chipping in takes you, most importantly, away from your usual range of familiarity and offers you a chance to address new difficulties, individuals with various ways of life, and associations with alternate points of view and encounters. Hence this will empower moving toward difficulties likewise from various points.

Volunteerism and local area inclusion have been exhibited to offer advantages both to networks and to volunteers themselves. Nonetheless, few out of every odd technique to energize these ways of behaving is similarly viable in delivering committed volunteers. Drawing on applicable hypothetical and exact written works, we recognize elements of endeavors that are probably going to create characteristically inspired other-situated volunteers and those that might deliver outwardly roused self-arranged volunteers. Specifically, we investigate ways of mingling youngsters to help and ways of building a feeling of local area zeroed in on specific issues. We additionally look at necessities for local area administration and different methodologies that feature self-arranged benefits that volunteers might acquire. At last, we return to an emphasis on the significance of characteristic inspiration for advancing supported contribution in volunteers, even as we recognize that volunteers who accompany extraneous or self-situated reasons can in any case offer a lot to networks and can be fulfilled when their exercises match their inspirations.

“To volunteer” is to represent the advantage of others without an actual commitment to do as such. “To be a worker” is to readily commit your time and assets to a reason, an individual, or a gathering. The demonstration of chipping in is one of the essential articulations of humane way of behaving, through which people adjust their inclinations to those of their particular networks and together help with accomplishing advantageous social advancement. By chipping in people exhibit their association in the public arena, their independence, and simultaneously – their bug-like harmony.

For a gathering to make due: fortitude, union and solidarity are requirements. Volunteerism is a Petri dish for each of the three. By chipping in you express your qualities, the upsides of your local area, and unwittingly you better the whole world. Human way of behaving is infectious, and being a transporter of unselfishness than a transporter of selfishness is better. At the point when an individual focuses on volunteerism, others will observe until it turns into the guideline locally. At the point when a local area focuses on volunteerism, others will keep until it turns into the guideline on the planet. This is the butterfly-impact of the human way of behaving. Everybody can take part in a deliberate action and contribute , by potential outcomes and the time that they have. Particularly youngsters who frequently utilize their spare energy with different exercises and don’t turn out to be essential for chipping in, without realizing that this movement might serve from here on out.

Humanitarian effort is a demonstration or activity of a gathering of people coordinated, to improve and reduce different issues that a given local area might have.

 

By: Sakshi Saini

Content Writer

Social Journal

Skills required for jobs in 21st century

                 

21st century has been a century of extraordinary growth and increasing opportunities for development. Work habits in this century are changing a lot and are driven by innovative technologies. In order to survive, workers need a new and different set of skills more than ever to compete in this growing environment. During past centuries, foundation skills like literacy and numeracy were all that worked for people but now the scenarios are changing drastically. This ever-growing and changing world brings new challenge for the working class. Every year it seems like there's some new technology or skill Study and innovation in this century has brought influx of new technology and skill that it feels difficult to catch up and master them. Countries around the world run their economy on creativity, innovation and collaboration. Recent change in labor market brought a shortage of skill and around one-third of global companies faced difficulties in filling key positions in another survey across the 24 countries included in the programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC), an average of 16% of adults had a low proficiency in literary and an average of 19% had a low proficiency in numeracy Only an average of 6% of adults demonstrated the highest level of proficiency in "problem solving in technology-rich environments" covers a broad set of skills and abilities Over these years various researches and  studies are done in order to prepare workforce for what's to come.

21st century is a century of extraordinary growth and can cover a lot of ground. There are a lot of skills to focus upon. All these skills are worth developing but one cannot focus on all of them and we need to narrow our focus on most important ones as we are aware of the fact that efficiency should be taken care off. Apart from some basic skills, the technology is going to bring change every once in a while, we cannot rely on the same set of skills. The most important need of the time is flexibility and employees must be open to learn. Unlike the traditional skills, soft skills which are need of the century that are not easy to describe and measured. The traditional way of learning is outdated and hence, replaced by creative and transformative way of learning. We need to focus on all around development of an individual as a particular set of skills are never enough for one to thrive. The set of skills which are necessary in this century include creativity, critical thinking, collaboration, information and communication literacy, leadership, productivity, global and cultural awareness and flexibility.

 Why do we need all the above-mentioned skills?

In this century, most of the jobs require their employees to think out of the box, in a critical and unorthodox manner, develop solutions to the problems and apply it. No work can be done on our own as we all need some help or material from others because none of us is self-sufficient which makes collaboration and team work as an important set of skills. Communication is required in every facet of life; one cannot succeed and grow with lack of proper communication. Facts, figures and statistical data are a new way to understand society and interpret it accordingly. We need to match our steps with information and communication technology in order to survive the changes and development in the work technologies. Global and cultural awareness helps us to understand the environment and workspace around us in a better way which in turn helps us in optimum utilization of resources. Flexibility and productivity are the most important of all the above skills in order to compete and thrive against rivals and rapid changes and development in workspace.

We are now familiar with the basic skills required for jobs in 21st century and in this situation of pandemic, there is more than ever need of digitalization and we need to adapt ourselves to new technologies. It is not possible to do jobs efficiently without the presence of all the new set of skills which are technology driven. According to an ILO report, this pandemic has provided us new innovative solutions towards skill development but has also increased the preexisting social divide as marginalized sections of society were not equipped with proper technologies.  Are we ready for this new working environment of rapidly changing world economy? There's no problem if the answer is that we need to pull up our socks and learn a few more skills. We can refine all these skills by formal education or by some employer focused schemes or simple focused repetition in life. We may come across many difficulties in this century of ever-growing competition but environment is best to thrive and achieve excellence. 

By Gavish CHAUDHARY

Content Writer

Social Journal

Scope of Socio-emotional learning in India

 

The goal of training isn’t restricted to imparting data to kids, but instead, to create basic

abilities that empower character development, and furnish them with the assets to tackle

issues what’s more, manage their life helpfully. “Socio-Emotional Learning (SEL) is the

cycle through which kids and grown-ups comprehend and deal with feelings, put forth and

accomplish uplifting objectives, feel also, show compassion for other people, lay out and

keep up with positive connections, and make capable decisions”. SEL is a term that can be

perceived through a wide range of viewpoints and focal points, be that as it may, anyway,

its significance for teenagers can’t be denied. A brief look at this large number of definitions

can be viewed as inside the “Investigate SEL” dashboard, which has recorded more than 40

structures utilized across the globe to quantify and advance SEL abilities.

The heap systems and clashing depictions of comparative wording and abilities can make

exploring the universe of social-profound advancing incredibly tedious and convoluted.

The most broadly utilized structures incorporate the CASEL Framework. (that recognizes 5

center abilities for the kid counting mindfulness, self-administration, social mindfulness,

relationship abilities and dependable navigation), OECD Framework for the Study on Social

and Emotional Skills, the abilities in this system are organized progressively, with six wide

expertise classes and the structure incorporates “compound” abilities that address blends

of at least two individual abilities. Social and profound capabilities don’t simply raise

scholarly accomplishment and instructive achievement, however have likewise major areas

of strength for exhibited with individual fulfillment and development, citizenship, and

diminished unsafe ways of behaving like savagery and medication use. Analysts have led a

wide expansiveness of concentrates on the effect of experience growing up misfortune,

which they characterize as not just awful encounters yet additionally ongoing stressors

that affect the kid. The unwavering pressure brought about by outrageous neediness,

disregard, or mishandle can debilitate the engineering of the creating mind, with long haul

ramifications for learning, conduct, and both physical also, mental health.

As of late, the requirement for SEL has just been exacerbated by the pandemic,

“Coronavirus pandemic in India and lockdown has affected 247 million youngsters signed

up for rudimentary and auxiliary instruction, other than 28 million kids who were going

through pre-school training in Anganwadi Centers”. Despite the fact that the public

authority of India has taken drives to proceed with training for youngsters through

different e-stages, “around just a fourth of families (24 for each cent) in India approach the

web and there is an enormous provincial metropolitan and orientation partition”.

The pandemic facetedly affects youngsters, with rising worries of kid insurance,

‘CHILDLINE’, a help of the Ministry of Women and Child Development had gotten 460,000

calls in 21 days from March 20 to April 10, a 50 percent expansion from their ordinary call

volumes. Also, the Health and Wellness Curriculum for school going adolescents (sent off in

February 2020, under the Ayushman Bharat conspire) has been created on the reason that

tending to prosperity comprehensively is basic for the well-adjusted development of a

juvenile to a sound grown-up.

Accordingly, large numbers of the state government and their projects are upheld by

associations that accept in the significance of SEL and its job in the improvement of a sound

juvenile into a solid grown-up. Despite the fact that a ton of endeavors are being placed into

driving force around strategy changes and outlook shift of the framework and different

partners, through our commitment in the space, we recognized that the socio-close to

home learning space in India is as yet loaded with many difficulties:

There is an absence of predictable comprehension of SEL in the Indian setting. Systems for

SEL are generally drawn from worldwide setting and miss the mark on vital switches to

contextualize SEL to different conditions inside India. There is a lack of dependable and

pertinent instruments for surveying SEL, making it troublesome to produce convincing

proof on-the-ground.

Moreover, while ventures are being made in the foundational execution of SEL across select

states, the ongoing work on SEL is executed in storehouses, with adequately not

components to unite the different players and to channelize designated financing to SEL.

There, first and foremost, is a need to incorporate India explicit proof for SEL that

considers the specific circumstance what’s more, necessities of the kids in India, this proof

could assist drive backing with the public authority, the associations and the contributors

that are hoping to venture into SEL. Besides, a consultative move toward should be

embraced to switch the NEP vision over completely to the real world. Thirdly, the

associations making progress toward SEL in the nation might have to meet up to execute

and gain from each other.

Written By:-

Sakshi Saini

Content Writer 

Social Journal

Extending the heart - Pandemic times

 There are countless volunteers at YEF, who have helped many people during the pandemic by contacting leads for hospital beds, oxygen cylinders, and more. They have helped save lives. This is one such extremely emotional story of one of our volunteers, Aratrika Dutta.