Technologys Role in Creating History and Shaping the Society - Research Paper Example

Literature Review Technology’s role in creating history and shaping the society Introduction Technology acts as a determinant factor in shaping up of a society. This belief gains ground with the advent of industrial revolution in various parts of the world. This impact of technology in creating separate social dimensions is regarded as “technological determinism”. The phrase “technological determinism” is observed to have been coined by scholars of the twentieth century. To this end, it is found that technology renders a far greater impact to the twentieth century society than other social, political, and international factors. In regards to technological impact in determining social change, it is held that technology sometimes depends on social forces and at other times it functions in an independent manner in disregard to social objections. The idea of ‘technological determinism’ had its birth in the continent of Europe. However, with the advent of technological research in United States of America the concept of ‘technological determinism’ started gaining ground in that country. The spread of American Revolution emphasized on the growth of a liberal and prosperous society. However, it is found that the proponents of increased social prosperity and liberty through the spread of industrial revolution suffered from the fear of malpractices. They viewed that the process of steady industrialization to gain material prosperity if mishandled would lead to corruption. The effect of corruption in turn would tarnish moral fabric of the political and social sector of the economy. (Heilbroner, 1994) The implementation of advanced forms of technology creates a considerable impact in shaping social structures and organizational dynamics of both the historical and present society. Technology of the war fronts in shaping Organizational Hierarchy and Specialized Labor Force In the modern context, it is found that the rapid spread of high combat technology to developing countries of the world is creating increased tensions in the social circles. It is widely viewed in this regard that such rapid spreading of war technologies to the hands of developing nations would turn into a factor difficult to be governed. Thus, it would become detrimental to the existence of the entire human race. In this regards, it is recommended to understand the effect of technology not in isolation to social systems but rather as a tool used by human beings to innovate newer process and systems. Further observation suggests that war technology used in both developed and developing countries have dual social implications. On one side, it is found that technological innovation in the war front is a product of human invention, which is created mainly to satisfy the growing material needs of the society. However, observation made on the other side of the story suggests that innovations made in the field of war technology helps in assimilating war forces to take collective actions. Thus, in this regards technology helps in creating organizational dynamism, which is observed to be a key factor in labor societies. To this end, historical insights reveal that the use of weaponry was attached in determination of the hierarchy of the army organization. The use of weapons like swords reflected on social status in relation to kings. This use of weaponry in the form of swords and bayonets has been replaced by the advent of machines. Special machinery warfare with missiles, torpedoes and guns has led the human race become dependent on it. The human beings are observed to have become the instruments of the developed weapon race. The advance of the weapon race not only determines hierarchy of army organization but also segments different industries needed for their production. It highlights the need of scientific division of the labor force needed to produce quality warfare in lesser span of time. (Kaldor, 1977, pp. 49-51) The above discussion shows that how the advent of technology governs the creation of organizational hierarchy. It is because the involvement of different advanced forms of technology necessitates various levels of organizational supervision and coordinating activities. Further, the increased use of advance forms of technology also reinforced the idea of special labor divisions. The increased dimensions of labor specializations have led to the growth of skilled labor forces in the industrial society of the modern age. (Heilbroner, 1994, p. 60) Karl Marx on Technological Determinism The concept of technological determinism as reflected by Karl Marx has a close tie with the concepts of productivity. Productivity potential of an economy depends broadly on two parameters viz. the human force as given by labor and technological force as rendered by the machines. Karl Marx identified that both the collective action taken by a group of human beings called labor and the abundance of material resources through which such action gets transferred help in addressing the desired production tasks and innovations. Further, Karl Marx defined two separate relations in regards to the act of production viz. the working population and the owners. The working population as identified by Karl Marx divulged more on the technical and material aspects of production. On the other hand, the owners signify the societal factor related to the production process. In regards to the above discussion, it is found that Karl Marx identified the role of labor force and the significance of human factor in relation to production. Karl Marx identifies the parameters of human skill, knowledge of the work and commendable expertise on the subject as the governing factors in designing the productive force of a nation. Thus, according to Karl Marx human factors compose the productive forces of a nation. The, Technological Determinant is only seen as a means used by the human force in achieving the desired level and quality of production. (Shaw, 2001. pp. 157-158). Thus, the theory propounded by Karl Marx is found to divide the society into two fronts, social and technological. It is observed as Karl Marx puts it that involvement of technological parameters create newer fragments in human relations to the society. (Heilbroner, 1994, p.59) Technological Determinism-Link with Capitalism To understand the links between the factors of “technological determinism” and capitalism reference is given to Karl Marx’s concept of “Productive Force determinism”. It is observed that every society aims to utilize the maximum potential of the “labor force” to achieve sustainable material gains. For achieving further material gains Karl Marx observes that society desires a changes or advancement in its “productive forces”. Thus, the determinants of the “productive forces” in relation to labor and ownership also change to that of the society. To achieve increased levels of production in order to arrive at a newer social equilibrium the society embraces the need for further technological innovations. This increased dependence on technological means of production also renders the growth to the concept of capitalism. Higher amount of capital is needed to procure better technological means to achieve desired production levels. The advancement to a modern technological society shredded the older feudalistic system of society dependent on labor and landlord relations. Improved means of technology led to the growth of the industrial and factory economy as industrial revolution gave further impetus to the concept of “technological determinism”. (Shaw, 2001, p.161) The concept of capitalism gained ground during the growth of industrial revolution. It was because the developed economies like United States of America were targeting growth in the “productive forces” of their economy. On the other hand, it was also found that the industrial growth was making its advancement to the realms of emerging economies with advancement of exports. Henceforth, the rise of the industrial revolution also triggered the growth of the productivity potential on a global scale. (Krugman, 2004, p. 82) Technological Determinism and the Internet Society The rise of the information driven society also guided the growth of different institutions and cultural frameworks within the society. It is found that with the advancement of technology the growth of Internet based communication also enhanced. This led the society to operate based on a multicultural framework with people from different nations. Further, it was also found that with the growth of technological utility in the global economy the global society was moving towards the advent of a newer form of ‘industrialism’ known as ‘informationalism’. Thus, it is found that the advancement made in the technological sphere gave further spurt to the need of a developed and skilled labor force. Further, due to increased automation in the work sphere the propensity of job cuts also increased. Newer organizational reforms and hierarchical designs emerged due to the above changes. The inclusion of computer and Internet technology to the industrial atmosphere gained ground owing to the rise in demand for better productivity and skilled expertise. Such growth also helped the different industries to gain the economy of production. (Castells, 2000. pp. 157-158). However, it is also found that the growth of technological use in the realms of society through the advancement of Internet technology has led to the emergence of terrorist activities. The growth of terrorist organizations is found to enabled by the growth of Internet technology. Terrorist outfits have emerged as distinct social groups which to propagate their own doctrines are increasingly making use of Internet technology. (Drezner, 2010. pp. 41-42). The concept of “technological determinism” also led to the growth of the hacking population. It is found that the hackers have identified themselves as distinct social groups. These groups of hackers are found busy in activities like reconstruction of software to promote a cleaner web environment. The hackers identified as “warriors” of “technological determinism” are targeting to make the society dynamic in the sector of technological, informational, and political growth. (Jordan, 2008. pp. 14-15). However, the advent of the Information and Communication Technology is found to render social and economic development in the global sphere by integration of different world communities. Again, the growth of Information and Communication Technology has helped change the outlook of the transfer of information flow within the regional base of a country. Regional integration within a country helps in the optimal utilization of the resource base and hence enhances productivity of the country. Thus, the integration of newer technological processes helps in augmenting the social and economic conditions of a country through increased cooperation between the regional quarters to achieve economic growth. (Obong & Parmentier, 2009, p. 289; Martinussen, 1997, p. 4). To this end, it can also be said that the gradual development of the society from the times of industrial revolution gave further impetus to the growth of technology. The development of trade and economic activities around the global sphere led the different countries to create a system where they can globally correlate with each other to generate further social and economic growth. Thus, the society has traversed a long way from labor driven societies to capital and machinery driven society and in the modern age to information driven society. However, the society must be technologically competent enough to embrace newer forms of technology. On the other hand, the technology to be rightly implemented must have an eye on the changing social dimensions to reduce the chances of being unfit to social conditions. (Heilbroner, 1994, p. 63; Roberts & Hite, 2007, p. 263) Conclusion The rise of the concept of “technological determinism” owes its origin to the growth on industrial revolution in the European countries. The industrial revolution of the developed countries started due to a rise in the demand for better productivity and skilful labor force. Moreover, with the rise in material demand for better goods and services the social equilibrium also countered a rapid change. The advent of rapid industrialization with the increased use of technology created a division through segmenting the labor force from the ownership circles. Labor force was regarded to be associated with technology while the ownership with the social system. Further, the increased employment of technology in industries and factories also rendered the growth of capitalism. With the advent of capitalist society, the feudal patterns of social structure countered a rapid change. Moreover, the advent of modern technology created newer organizational structures in regards to hierarchy and labor divisions. Specialized forms of labor emerged in the scene. In the modern Internet age the development of Internet communication has helped in creating a separate information society, which is rapidly moving towards global economic development. References 1. Castells, M. (2000). The rise of the network society. Wiley-Blackwell. 2. Drezner, D. (2010). Weighting the Scales: The Internet’s Effect on State-Society Relations. Brown Journal of World Affairs. 16(2). 3. Heilbroner, R.L. (1994), “Do Machines make History?”, In, Smith, M. & L. Marx. Does technology drive history?: the dilemma of technological determinism. MIT Press. 4. Jordan, T. (20085). Hacking: Digital Media and Technological Determinism. Polity. 5. Kaldor, M. (1977), “Military, Technology and Social Structure”, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists. 33(6), pp. 49-53. 6. Krugman, P. (2004). “Is Capitalism Too Productive?”, Foreign Affairs. 76(5). 7. Martinussen, J. (1997).  Society, State & Market. Zed Books Ltd. 8. Obong, P. & M. Parmentier. (2009). Linkages and Connections: A Framework for Research in Information and Communication Technologies, Regional Integration and Development. Review of Policy Research. 26(3), 289-309 9. Roberts, J. & A. Hite. (2007). The globalization and development reader: perspectives on development and global change. Wiley-Blackwell 10. Shaw, W. (2001). “The Handmill Gives You the Feudal Lord”: Marx’s Technological Determinism. Read More