It does not, it will never replace face to face communication and the''secureness'' of friendship. Eventho you might get to ''know'' someone superficially on the internet, the personal connection will stay away. Dont forget that these media are quite new to us. When we will get more used to this kind of media, the shift back to personal will become more important. A good example of that is the campaign that was on facebook recently about people putting their phone away and starting to live in the real world again.

This is the future in my opinion

It's definitely not the same. Digital Communication is great way to get in touch with people and communicate in a quick, and really easy manner. It's especially great for friends and family abroad. However, it can not replace face-to-face communication. It can even cause miss-communication (sarcasm is often being misread on social media) because you can not see any facial expression from the other person. I would say that digital communications are more of a supplementary tool to face-to-face communication and it definitely shouldn't replace it.

Digital communication doesn't give the same personal connection as face-to-face conversations. Nothing better than being surrounded by friends in real life and just being able to talk to them. Digital communication can never replace this feeling. Even Skype is not the same, although you can see each other on camera. I think this personal need will never change.

However, digital communication does come in handy with international contacts and friends. If you have traveled before or spent your minor abroad, it is a great way to stay in contact with people you are not able to see face-to-face whenever you want to. The feeling might not be the same, but it does feel great to be able to stay connected with them.

Personally, I think that a certain counter reaction about the digital communication will take place and more and more people will prefer face-to-face communication again. In my opinion, people will always feel the need to be loved and appreciated in a personal way (so not via whatsapp etc.). So I do not believe that digital communication gives the same personal connection as a face-to-face conversation. Nevertheless, I think that more time needs to pass before any researcher is able to draw long-term conclusions about the effect of digital communication and I believe that one cannot state all benefits and dangers about the swift in society regarding our ways of communicating with each other. More time needs to pass, before we can discuss the real pro's and cons about the way we are communicating right now.

I agree that generally digital communication is lacking of emotions and the "personal" touch. Nevertheless I have been wondering for a while why people are not calling each other anymore? Its in a way a digital communication but still includes the "between the lines" effect of feeling the other person's mood.

So maybe people are not interested in a more engrossing way of communication anymore...

Digital communication will never be similar to face-to-face communication. There is a lot more to communication than words, in my personal opinion it goes even further than gestures, sighs, tone of voice and body language.. To me it even goes to the point of touch, and meeting of energies / moods..

Digital communication is not personal, static, not fluid and offers more privacy - distance.. It also causes a lot of misinterpretations because people can simple not ''read'' each other through body language and their energy.

Since I’m not the most outspoken person in the ‘real world’, digital communication such as social media have given me an useful alternative to real life social interaction. Yet, I don’t think digital communication gives the same personal connection as face-to-face communication. It can help to start a conversation but in order for personal relationships to develop, one needs to meet in person. I strongly believe that ‘memories’ and friendships can only be established if you experience things together (in the real world, not the virtual world!). Social media should not replace regular interaction; it should be used as an extension to face-to-face communication.

Digital communication is different from in-person communication, so naturally it is not going to form the same personal connection. That does not, however, mean that the digital connection is objectively less valuable than the in-person connection.

face-to-face communication ALLOWS YOU TO FEEL THE OTHERS EXPRESSIONS

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No, it does not give the same personal connection as face to face communication. Though it is a lot easier to use digital communication as you don't have to worry about whether people are working, on the road, or if you're disturbing them; they will answer you in their own time.

I also disagree with this statement. Although we trying to improve the richness of digital communication through for example adding emoticons to replace gestures, it just does not have the same value as a real interaction. Too many factors that are important in face to face communication such as body language, facial expressions or even smell fall away. This allows for substantially more equivocality and can be misleading in conversations - especially with people you do not know in real life. I think however, for maintaining friendships with people who live far away or abroad for example, digital communication is very valuable and can help bridge distances substantially.