REFLECTIONS ON THE MEDIATIZATION OF HUMAN BEHAVIOR AND THE USE OF FREE TIME

Abstract

The present study aimed to reflect on the effects of mediatization of human behavior and the use of individuals' free time. To this end, a brief theoretical survey was carried out presenting the concepts of mediatization of behavior within the context of modernity, highlighting social saturation, the fluidity of relationships and the state of mass connections. In a second step, the methodology included the research analysis carried out in the project “UBACYT - (...) 2014-2016 period”, from which three behaviors were extracted for analysis: (i) frequency Internet use for leisure and recreation; (ii) frequency of using Facebook, Twitter, Skype and WhatsApp; and (iii) frequency of meeting with friends. The main results of this evaluation indicated that: (a) in the items 'i' and 'ii' there is an expressive representation among young people up to 34 years old and with a concentration of daily attendance; (b) in item 'iii', the frequency of meeting with friends occurs a few times a week and sometimes a month to a lesser extent. With this, the present article confirms, on the one hand, the trend of mediatization of human behavior. On the other hand, when the mediatization of human behavior is related to the use of free time, according to the data evaluated in this research, there is only a shift in the meeting with friends from daily to weekly and monthly frequency, thus indicating that mediatization, under the conditions evaluated, it did not affect or influence the use of free time in social relationships.