By Chanchal Manohar Singh

After administrating couple of WhatsApp groups, including those of professionals, formals and non-formals, I have come to an interesting conclusion that steadily but eventually the WhatsApp groups have turned into the centre of egoism, jingoism and groupism. The feeling of lack of etiquettes among WhatsApp users have prompted me to have a virtual conversation with them through this small but relevant blog, as recently during a discussion on WhatsApp groups, I came across many unethical behaviours, personal attacks on members and needless argumentative approach. Some members were targeted for their age in the group, for showing courage to correct others, for supporting an idea, which was otherwise being narrated not on the right path. The age obsession among few members in the groups is needless and unwanted. Those members must understand that floating and supporting any idea requires mental abilities and deep thought process and age or other affiliations are no criteria to judge what is right or wrong.

People often brag about their eloquence and WhatsApp group provide an open platform to those people, which is often irritating for other members of the group. So, in case of conflict of opinions, the particular participants must further their trial of arguments in personal chat, instead of bothering others.

With the advent of technology, new means of communication have been popped up, which are fast, conducive, comprehensive and easy to operate. A latest in the trend of advanced communication is WhatsApp, which is economical and fast. To operate WhatsApp all you need is a smartphone and internet connection. The beauty of WhatsApp is that it is not limited to interpersonal communication, but is considered as the best medium of group communication. A single tap on cursor has the ability to send text message, image and even videos to n-Number of members added in the list. Another option in the kitty is broadcast list, which is quite comprehensible from the name itself. It works in a phenomenon, wherein the user prepares a group of like-minded people and shares any information they desire. Although, broadcast transfers message to large number of people, but it is different from group. In broadcast list, there is little or no scope of discussions, while as in group, the members can discuss about any topic in length and breadth. So, WhatsApp has transformed the means of communication to the next level, wherein people can express their opinions about any subject, from the cosy environments of their rooms, without facing the other participant. With so many constructive inferences, this mode of communication is also not immune to flaws and failings and the biggest among all is lack of group etiquettes, which is inferred through behaviour, lack of knowledge, an inclination to irrelevant arguments and unnecessary posts. It has been seen that people often use WhatsApp for personal entertainment, as it not only keeps you in contact with friends and family, but also brings world exposure to your screen with latest videos and images, as shared by anyone in the group, since group comprises of like-minded people from different age groups and social strata. What is most disgusting part in group communication on WhatsApp is that it is injecting toxic among users, as people do not understand the real meaning of sharing and caring. The few points detailed below are in vogue, which is making WhatsApp group communication allergic, toxic and boring:

Greetings: It doesn’t suit everybody to afford to open image or video every morning and evening just as a fun. So, to maintain decorum of the group, such posts should be avoided.

Unnecessary arguments: People often brag about their eloquence and WhatsApp group provide an open platform to those people, which is often irritating for other members of the group. So, in case of conflict of opinions, the particular participants must further their trial of arguments in personal chat, instead of bothering others.

Unverified material: Some people tend to show that they are ahead of everyone, puts all the trash on the group without even verifying their authenticity. So, in case you receive an image or video, the best thing is to verify it from the authentic source. A little late information is better than wrong information.

Controversial material: There have been cases, wherein police had to act against group administrator for uploading and sharing unverified and controversial material, which has the tendency to create rift in the society. So, one must be very meticulous in selecting the material for sharing. There should not be personal attacks about religion, region and social strata of any person. The administrators hold huge responsibilities while operating any group. He should not be a silent spectator and has to manage the group in a professional manner, without siding anyone. He must be a good moderator, but has the ability and courage to call ‘spade-a-spade’.

Avoidance of above stated factors will not only increase sustainability of the group, but will also makes it credible source of information.