1. Do you think that people who live in large cities don’t have a sense of community?
YES:
People in large cities:
• seem to have no time for building any sense of community
• seem completely uninterested in connecting with people around them
• know nothing about people around them.
NO:
• I don’t think a sense of community depends on the size of the city
• human beings are social beings and so they have a sense of community despite the size of the place they live in.
2. Which is more important: a sense of community or a sense of national pride?
A sense of community is more important because:
• belonging to some community is a basic psychological need
• people need to have close, supportive relationships and feel that they are connected
• human beings are wired to be part of a group
• it establishes peace and harmony among the society
• if people feel part of something bigger than themselves, they are far more likely to take care of others and the environment around them
• it develops an increased sense of social responsibility – a global view of society and a wish to help others
• it builds relationships and social connectedness
• it helps people create a sense of identity and a resilience to untoward social change.
A sense of national pride is more important because:
• feeling good about your country also makes you feel good about your own life, which is important for feeling happy
• it encourages people to do wonderful things for the country
• it makes people responsible for the betterment of the country
• when people love the country where they grew up, they prefer living there and helping it most instead of leaving it
• it encourages people to endure many hardships their country faces, willing to sacrifice some of their own self-interest for the public interest, and temporary gains for future ones.
3. Can online communities be considered real communities?
YES:
• the world behind the screens is not very different from the real world
• both online and real communities serve the same purpose – communication, which creates lasting relationship between people
• both communities contribute to the establishment of strong bonds between people.
NO:
• in real communities, people cannot avoid communication, due to the common place of living
• for example, while in online communities if people don’t want to communicate, they just don’t want to communicate, they just don’t connect to the Internet.